MUSICA
2/2018 STUDIA UNIVERSITATIS BABEŞ-BOLYAI MUSICA
2/2018 DECEMBER REFEREES:
Acad. Dr. István ALMÁSI, Folk Music Scientific Researcher, Cluj-Napoca, Romania, Member of the Hungarian Academy of Arts – Budapest, Hungary Univ. Prof. Dr. István ANGI, Former: “Gh. Dima” Music Academy, Cluj-Napoca, Romania Univ. Prof. Dr. Gabriel BANCIU, “Gh. Dima” Music Academy, Cluj-Napoca, Romania Univ. Prof. Dr. Habil. Stela DRĂGULIN, Transylvania University of Braşov, Romania Univ. Prof. Dr. Habil. Noémi MACZELKA DLA, Pianist, Former Head of the Arts Institute and the Department of Music Education, University of Szeged, “Juhász Gyula” F2aculty of Education, Hungary College Prof. Dr. Péter ORDASI, Former: University of Debrecen, Faculty of Music, Hungary Univ. Prof. Dr. Pavel PUŞCAŞ, “Gh. Dima” Music Academy, Cluj-Napoca, Romania Univ. Prof. Dr. Valentina SANDU-DEDIU, National University of Music, Bucharest, Romania Univ. Prof. Dr. Ilona SZENIK, Former: “Gh. Dima” Music Academy, Cluj-Napoca, Romania Acad. Univ. Prof. Dr. Eduard TERÉNYI, Composer. Former: “Gh. Dima” Music Academy, Cluj-Napoca, Romania, Member of the Hungarian Academy of Arts – Budapest, Hungary Acad. College Associate Prof. Dr. Péter TÓTH, DLA, University of Szeged, Dean of the Faculty of Musical Arts, Hungary, Member of the Hungarian Academy of Arts – Budapest, Hungary
EDITOR-IN-CHIEF:
Associate Prof. Dr. Gabriela COCA, Babeş-Bolyai University, Reformed Theology and Musical Pedagogy Department, Cluj-Napoca, Romania
PERMANENT EDITORIAL BOARD:
Associate Prof. Dr. Éva PÉTER, Babeş-Bolyai University, Reformed Theology and Musical Pedagogy Department, Cluj-Napoca, Romania Lecturer Prof. Dr. Miklós FEKETE, Babeş-Bolyai University, Reformed Theology and Musical Pedagogy Department, Cluj-Napoca, Romania Lecturer Prof. Dr. Noémi MIKLÓS, Babeş-Bolyai University, Reformed Theology and Musical Pedagogy Department, Cluj-Napoca, Romania Lecturer Prof. Dr. Emese SÓFALVI, Babeş-Bolyai University, Reformed Theology and Musical Pedagogy Department, Cluj-Napoca, Romania
ENGLISH TRANSLATIONS COORDINATOR: Maria COZMA (London, United Kingdom)
Studia UBB Musica is sponsored by the Faculty of Reformed Theology, Reformed Theology and Musical Pedagogy Department, Babeş-Bolyai University, Cluj-Napoca, Romania Dean: Associate Prof. Dr. Olga LUKÁCS
Front cover: DADDI, Bernardo, Four Musical Angels c. 1345, Tempera on wood, 44 x 53 cm Christ Church Picture Gallery, Oxford Sursa: https://www.wga.hu/index1.html Beginning with 1/2017, Studia UBB Musica has been selected for coverage in Clarivate Analytics products and services. Studia UBB Musica will be indexed and abstracted in Emerging Sources Citation Index.
YEAR (LXIII) 2018 MONTH DECEMBER ISSUE 2
PUBLISHED ONLINE: 2018-12-17 PUBLISHED PRINT: 2018-12-17 ISSUE DOI:10.24193/subbmusica.2018.2
S T U D I A UNIVERSITATIS BABEŞ-BOLYAI MUSICA 2
STUDIA UBB EDITORIAL OFFICE: B.P. Hasdeu no. 51, 400371 Cluj-Napoca, Romania, Phone + 40 264 405352, [email protected]
SUMAR – SOMMAIRE – CONTENTS – INHALT
COMPUTER MUSIC ADRIAN BORZA, Interactive Sound Tools and Engines ...... 9
MUSICAL MANAGEMENT OANA BĂLAN, The Management of Communication and Commercial Practice in the Viennese Classical Era ...... 21
MUSIC CRITICISM CRISTINA ȘUTEU, Der Musikkritiker zwischen Rolle und Verantwortlichkeiten (The Music Critic between Role and Responsibilities) ...... 29
MUSICAL PSYCHOLOGY STELA DRĂGULIN, The Unifying Power of Music in Marsilio Ficino’s Visio ...... 37 MUSICAL MEDICINE TAMÁS J. ALTORJAY – ÁDÁM PERÉNYI – GÁBOR ÁDÁM, The Effect of Pregnancy on the Singing Voice ...... 47
MUSICAL THERAPY MIKLÓS GYÖRGYJAKAB, Music belongs to all of us! Even to the deaf! (?) .. 57 JÁNOS ZSOLT IMRE, Chamber Music Explorations for Meditation ...... 67 LOIS VĂDUVA – ANNAMARIA BALLA, The Impact of Music Therapy Sessions on Children Diagnosed with Progressive Chronic Illness – a Pilot Program ...... 85
MUSIC HISTORY EVA-ELENA JORDAN, The Soprano Voice Type and its Importance within the Operetta Genre ...... 103 EVA-ELENA JORDAN, Operetta as a Genre from its Beginnings to its Famous Hungarian Representatives ...... 115 NOÉMI KARÁCSONY, Characteristics of the 19th Century French Opera reflected in the Works of Saint-Saëns and Bizet ...... 133
MUSICAL STYLISTICS STELIAN IONAȘCU, Intersections of Arts. Structural and Language Analogies ... 143 RYTIS URNIEŽIUS, The Development and Periods of Edvard Grieg’s Orchestral Style ...... 165
MUSIC PEDAGOGY MIRELA MERCEAN-ȚÂRC, The Anonymous Educator ...... 187 ALEXANDRA BELIBOU, Integrating Computerized Musical Education into an Interdisciplinary Paradigm; Proposal of Applications using Sibelius Software ..... 205
ETHNOMUSICOLOGY HENRIETTA CIOBA, Ethnographic and Folk Music Traditions of Jobbágytelke (Sâmbriaş), III. Part ...... 211
FOLK MUSIC ZOLTÁN GERGELY, Small Ambitus – New Style Christmas Carols from the Transylvanian Plain ...... 267
MUSIC ANALYSES PETRUȚA-MARIA COROIU, The Theme of the Prodigal Son's Return in Classical Music II: Sergei Prokofiev ...... 279 ÉVA PÉTER, Folk Song Adaptations for Men’s Choir by János Serpődi ...... 285 ECATERINA BANCIU, History of a Forgotten Passacaglia: The Symphony No. 3 “Ovid” Finale by Sigismund Toduță ...... 297 BIANCA ȚIPLEA-TEMEȘ, Haunting Soundscapes of Transylvania: Ligeti’s Research Stay at the Folklore Institute in Bucharest ...... 311
BOOK REVIEWS Considerations about a Fundamental Book of Romanian Musicology (OLEG GARAZ) ...... 327 “The Music in the Silent Sound”: George Balint, Privirea estetică: încercare în contemplarea muzicii (The Aesthetic Gaze: Attempt at Contemplating Music), Bucharest: Editura Muzicală, 2018, 177 p., ISBN 978-973-42-1029-9 (CRISTINA ȘUTEU) ...... 335
CONCERT CHRONICLES
The Valkyrie by Richard Wagner, in Concert. Gabriel Bebeșelea and the „Transilvania” State Philharmonic Orchestra Dress Rehearsal with Audience and the Closing Concert of the “Cluj Musical Autumn” International Festival (October 25-26, 2018) (ECATERINA BANCIU) ...... 341
CONTRIBUTORS ...... 347
SUBSCRIPTION ...... 355
AGREEMENT OF CHANGE BETWEEN THE INSTITUTIONS ...... 357
INVITATION FOR PUBLISHING ...... 359
STUDIA UBB MUSICA, LXIII, 2, 2018 (p. 9 – 20) (RECOMMENDED CITATION) DOI:10.24193/subbmusica.2018.2.01
INTERACTIVE SOUND TOOLS AND ENGINES
ADRIAN BORZA1
SUMMARY. The compositional algorithms are recognized as solutions to music problems which appear in computer programming. They are small to large-sized patches designed for analyzing, for example, the direction, size, and the magnitude of change of a melodic interval; analyzing the rest between two MIDI events; analyzing the register, duration, delta time and dynamics of MIDI events; analyzing the number of notes of a chord; storing, limiting and sorting pitch or intensity values; processing MIDI events; making chord progressions; compositing a canon; tracking a musical MIDI score.
Keywords: Computer Music, compositional algoritm
Introduction The practical goal of this paper is to help increase creative thinking since a musician will focus on compositional algorithms and programming practices applied in Computer Music. Therefore, we introduce several Max patches as solutions to problems which often appear in programming. These patches, named sound tools and engines, are classified according to keywords and functional categories. For example, the class Register refers to two programs called range and range.sel. The patch range identifies the pitch numbers of a MIDI event within a range of notes and the patch range.sel signals the pitch value within a defined register. They have in common particular keywords: pitch, range, and register. The second objective is to assist musician to understand the concepts, terms, and practices associated with Max, and to acquaint him with a software development methodology in general, with the intent of better planning and managing his effort. However, it is assumed that the reader has accumulated knowledge of basic concepts of music theory and a rudimentary understanding of computer and software.
1 He is an Associate Professor at the Gheorghe Dima Music Academy, Str. Ion I.C. Brătianu, nr. 25, Cluj-Napoca 400079, Romania. Email: [email protected]
9 ADRIAN BORZA
Conventions The names of the Max objects are displayed in colored style, like this. Messages and lines of code are displayed in Courier New bold style, like this. Additional names, filenames, and relevant concepts are displayed in italic style, like this. A Max patch refers to a single small- (tiny-) mid- or a large-sized program made in a Patcher window. The patch is saved under a filename and extension, like.this.maxpat. An abstraction is a patch file saved under a filename and extension, like.this.abs.maxpat. The abstraction is used as a Max object (i.e. object box) inside the main patch.
Musician’s abstractions We are going to present several categories of author’s small-sized encapsulated programs, called musician’s abstractions. They are designed in a modular practice so that the formally initiated programmer-musician and the debutant student make interactive programs in the shortest possible time. These abstractions offer solutions to the following musical issues: analyzing the direction, size, and magnitude of the melodic interval change; analyzing the size, and magnitude of the harmonic interval change; analyzing the rest between two sound events (MIDI); analyzing the number of notes of a chord; analyzing the register, duration, delta time and dynamics of sound events performed on a MIDI keyboard; storing, limiting, transposing and sorting of pitch values; storing, limiting, and sorting of intensity values; recording and processing of sound events (MIDI) by augmentation and rhythmic diminution, by decreasing and increasing the tempo; making chord progressions; humanizing or diversifying the chord structure, with regard to the attack and the intensity of the notes; compositing of a two-voice canon, synchronized and unsynchronized; tracking and automated accompanying of musical score (MIDI). The musician’s abstractions are structured on the functional criterion, illustrating common properties and actions within structural networks. Abstractions are ordered alphabetically and are accompanied by keywords. Functional categories are Keyboard, Global Transport, Register, Score Following, Canon, Pitch, Sequencer, Transposition, Interval, Velocity, Duration and Time, Humanize, Chords and Progressions, and MIDI. The diagram contains a descriptive name and abstraction definitions. A brief description of the main abstractions is also given.
10 INTERACTIVE SOUND TOOLS AND ENGINES
Table 1 Keyboard: interaction kslider.interactive Interactive Keyboard
Table 2 Global Transport gt.control Control the Global Transport
Table 3a Register: pitch, range range Identify the pitch numbers of an event within a range range.sel Signal the pitch value within a register
Table 3b The patch range.sel signals once, with a message of type bang, the pitch value of a MIDI event according to the low and high limits typed-in the number objects. The patch is restored to its original state once the pitch surpasses the limits. A MIDI event is any note, harmonic interval or chord. Input: raw MIDI data, int. Output: bang.
Table 4
Score Following: live performance, synchronization follow Listen to a live music performance follow.sync Listen to a live music performance and synchronize events
Table 5 Canon: quantization canon Make a canon of 2 voices canon.sync Make a canon of 2 voices quantized to a time-boundary
11 ADRIAN BORZA
Table 6a
Pitch: range, threshold, velocity pitch.past Signal when a threshold is exceeded pitch.sel Signal the pitch value of an event pitch.vel.limit Limit the pitch or velocity numbers to the 0–127 range
Table 6b
The program pitch.vel.limit prevents incoming pitch and velocity values from surpassing the 0–127 range. It also identifies and signals, with a message of type bang, the numbers within that range. Input: int. Output: int, bang.
Table 7a
Sequencer: controller, keyboard seq.control Control the seq object seq.ctrl Control a sequencer using a keyboard controller and the notein seq.ctrl.midiin Control a sequencer using a keyboard controller and the midiin
The patch seq.ctrl.midiin deals with basic commands for the seq object such as recording (record), stop (stop) and playback (start). Pressing C4 (72) key on a keyboard controller, the patch records incoming MIDI events, pressing C#4 (73) it stops the sequencer, and pressing D4 (74) it plays back previously recorded data. The patch uses the midiin object for input MIDI data. Input/Output: raw MIDI data.
12 INTERACTIVE SOUND TOOLS AND ENGINES
Table 7b
Table 8a
Transposition: pitch transpo Move up or down the pitch numbers of an event transpo.abs The abstraction of the program transpo transpo.abs.init The interface of the abstraction transpo.abs transpo.gui Move up or down the pitch numbers of an event with a constant value stored in the preset object
The patch transpo.gui moves up or down the incoming pitch values of a MIDI event by a constant number typed-in the number object. The result is constrained to the minimum and maximum limits of 0 and 127, respectively. If the result is outside this range, is replaced by 0 or 127. The user interface contains the preset object for storing and retrieving transposition values. Input: raw MIDI data, int, mouse movement. Output: raw MIDI data.
13 ADRIAN BORZA
Table 8b
Table 9a
Interval: direction, harmonic, melodic, pitch, size int.chord.sort Split pitch values into int or list numbers int.dir Identify the direction of a melodic interval int.dir.change Signal when the direction of a melodic interval is changed int.dir.size Identify the direction and size of a melodic interval int.size.2n Identify the size of a harmonic interval int.table Store the pitch values of a MIDI event into a table
Table 9b
The patch int.table stores in the itable object and displays the pitch values of a MIDI event. It also filters out incoming values less than C1 (36) and greater than B4 (83). Input: raw MIDI data, int, symbol. Output: int (36–83).
14 INTERACTIVE SOUND TOOLS AND ENGINES
Table 10a
Velocity: decrease, increase, range, voice vel.gui Identify and split the velocity values of an event in ranges vel.inc.dec Increase or decrease the velocity of an event vel.rec Store the velocity values of a single voice vel.sel Signal the velocity range of an event vel.table Store the velocity values of an event into a table velocity Identify the velocity values of an event according to a range
Table 10b
The patch vel.rec filters harmonic intervals and chords, and then stores the velocity numbers of MIDI notes which are identified within a single voice. A velocity value stored inside the funbuff object is recalled by typing its address number in the number object. Input: raw MIDI data, int. Output: int.
Table 11a
Duration and Time: augmentation, diminution, speed, tempo aug.dim Augment or diminish the duration by a float number aug.dim.gui Augment or diminish the duration by a fixed amount tempo.sec Decrease or increase the speed of a sequence in seconds tempo.ticks Decrease or increase the tempo of a sequence in ticks delta time, duration, silence, voice dur.sil Identify duration and silence in milliseconds dur.sil.dt Identify duration, silence, and delta time in milliseconds dur.sil.dt.poly Identify duration, silence, delta time, and voice silence Signal the silence between 2 events
15 ADRIAN BORZA
Table 11b
This program called dur.sil.dt.poly recognizes the duration of an incoming MIDI note, the silence and delta time between two consecutive notes of each allocated MIDI voice. The voice is represented by a single number assigned to the note on and note off pair. It reports the results in milliseconds counted for duration, silence and delta time. Input: raw MIDI data. Output: int.
Table 12a
Humanize: chord, delay, velocity hum.pitch.abs The abstraction of the program human.pitch hum.pitch.abs.init The interface of the abstraction hum.pitch.abs hum.vel.abs The abstraction of the patch human.vel hum.vel.abs.init The interface of the abstraction human.vel.abs human.audio An interface for abstractions called hum.pitch.abs and human.vel.abs human.pitch Simulate a human performance of a chord using discrete delay time human.vel Simulate a human performance of a chord using discrete velocity humanize Simulate a human performance of a chord using discrete delay time and discrete velocity
The patch humanize combines features of the human.pitch and human.vel programs to simulate a human performance. The patch named human.pitch filters out incoming MIDI events, removing harmonic intervals and chords, thus it allows passing a single voice. It also computes pitch numbers in order to generate 3-notes chords by adding values typed-in the number objects to the incoming value. Both first and second note of the chord is delayed by a very small and different number of milliseconds in order to simulate a human performance. Duration numbers remain unchanged. The patch called human.vel randomly generates three velocity values of the chord within a small range in order to simulate a human performance. Input: raw MIDI data, int. Output: raw MIDI data.
16 INTERACTIVE SOUND TOOLS AND ENGINES
Table 12b
Table 13a
Chords and Progressions: interval, pitch, velocity chord.3n Generate 3-notes chord chord.rec Store and sort lists of pitch values chord.size Identify the number of notes of an event chord.size.8n Identify the size of intervals of an 8-notes chord chord.sort.route Sort the pitch values for the route object chord.sort.spray Sort the pitch values for the spray object chord.vel Identify the velocity of notes of an event chord progression progress.abs The abstraction of the program progressions progress.abs.int The interface of the abstraction progress.abs progressions Make chord progressions
The program progressions generates 3-notes chords as a response to the MIDI pitch values 60, 62, 64, 65, 67, 69 and 71, which represents C3, D3, E3, F3, G3, A3 and B3. Their velocity and duration values are identical with the input numbers of these parameters. Each received note generates a different chord specified inside the file progressions.txt. The
17 ADRIAN BORZA
line of code holds an address followed by three pitch values: 1, 64 67 72; 2, 65 69 74; 3, 64 67 71; 4, 65 69 72; 5, 62 67 71; 6, 64 69 72; 7, 62 65 71;. Input: raw MIDI data, symbol. Output: raw MIDI data.
Table 13b
Table 14a
MIDI: chord, driver, duration, note, text, VSTi midi.bag Make notes with the bag object midi.chord.3n Make 3-notes chord with the offer object midi.driver Select installed MIDI drivers midi.flush Make events with the flush object midi.make Make events of fixed duration with the makenote midi.makenote Make events of variable length with the makenote midi.offer Make events with the offer object midi.text Convert MIDI messages into text format midi.vsti Send MIDI messages to a VSTi plug-in midi.vsti.abs The abstraction of the patch midi.vsti midi.vsti.abs.init The interface of the abstraction midi.vsti.abs
18 INTERACTIVE SOUND TOOLS AND ENGINES
Table 14b
The program midi.text filters and converts MIDI messages into symbol messages for pitch numbers identified in incoming flow data. Pitch numbers are stored as list messages in the coll object in order to be used with the programs called follow and follow.sync. Input: raw MIDI data, int, symbol. Output: raw MIDI data, list.
Conclusions This paper highlights elements of formalization of musical language. The musician-programmer deals, in most cases, with the abstraction and transfer of rules and composition procedures. Working with high-level musical concepts, the cognitive transfer is completed in mathematical and logical operations. The features of the computer object refer to what the Max object means to a musician and how the object behaves in a program made by him. This vision, from the outside, on the computer object belongs to the musician concerned with what he represents and what is the object. The attributes of the Max object also refer to what the object’s resource file contains and how its source code works. This vision, from the inside, is suitable for the musician interested in what makes up and how the object code is running. The Max object is the indispensable foundation for the construction of compositional algorithms.
19 ADRIAN BORZA
REFERENCES
Cycling ’74, Max Fundamentals, 4.6, 2006. Cycling ’74, Max Tutorials, 2016. The MIDI Manufacturers Association, MIDI 1.0. Detailed Specification, 4.2, Los Angeles, 1995.
20 STUDIA UBB MUSICA, LXIII, 2, 2018 (p. 21 – 28) (RECOMMENDED CITATION) DOI:10.24193/subbmusica.2018.2.02
THE MANAGEMENT OF COMMUNICATION AND COMMERCIAL PRACTICE IN THE VIENNESE CLASSICAL ERA
OANA M. BĂLAN1
SUMMARY. The historical models that have understood and approached the consumption demand of the time are valuable assets for present-day music careers. The confrontation of celebrities in the history of music with the real world to which they had to adapt is an aspect that can motivate the paradigm towards contemporary issues. Important moments in music history have been marked by the dependence of consumption, when exceptional musicians have met human challenges that made them act on the same line with the public's consciousness, to enjoy, to be remembered and to earn their living from a neadful creative work. In the age we live, the connections between the audience profile, its consumption needs and the cultural music field are not so much analyzed. Contemporary music today is more and more abstract and comes in opposition to that which our forerunners have proven, instead of getting closer to public actual composer continue to be hypersavant, using exclusive algorithms that will not lead to a succesful prognostics in future.
Keywords: music careers, self-management, history, entrepreneurship, audiences.
Introduction The music of our day reflects the culture of our day and the value of our societies. The systems of value change due to the contact that individuals have with different backgrounds and cultures. Prospects and life goals are different as people age, shifting from independence and curiosity to wisdom, acceptance and integration. The way in which the individual seeks meaning in life is determined by a wide range of financial, social, communal motivations.
1 Univ. Lecturer Professor, PhD, „Gh. Dima” Academy of Music, Cluj-Napoca, Romania. E-mail: [email protected]
21 OANA M. BĂLAN
Compared to the “needs”, people’s “wants” can be influenced by social and cultural status. These arise irrationally in the consciousness of each individual and depend on the assessment criteria of each person. People generally trust what they know, as that something is reflected in their cognitive universe and gives them an essential psychological comfort when it comes to selling and buying a product. The more substantial public exposure a brand has, and a living presence in the collective memory, the higher the confidence is. Changes in music are closely connected with changes in society, this explains why music tastes change so quickly today.
History comes to confirm that high-class musicians have practiced intuitive entrepreneurship, sought out networks and support to make themselves known, learned to organize events in which they would exhibit their creative talent and abilities. In the sixteenth century, the subdomain of musical publications held the monopoly of the market, being the most profitable financial source: "In 1575, Queen Elizabeth granted Thomas Tallis and Richard Bower, members of the Chapel Royal, an exclusive license to print and publish music. The letters-patent issued for this purpose were among the first of their kind in the country"2 One of the most effective entrepreneurs of the Renaissance was Orlando di Lasso, who published 450 volumes of his own music during his lifetime. As the commercial practice of the publications expanded, business people considered appropriate to collaborate with the musicians of the time. Since then, musicians understood that manipulating the consumer market through social networks was an essential aspect that guaranteed their reputation and, implicitly, career success. Ensuring good publicity by optimizing and maintaining communication with influential institutions and people has always had a favorable economic and professional outcome. At the beginning of the eighteenth century, a structure called the New Church initiated a system of engagement that involved musical services not only in the sacred but also external context of worship, an alternative that allowed performers to combine traditional practice and modern adaptations consumed by the audience of those times. Thus, the circumstances that encouraged diversity also came with new perspectives for musical careers, guaranteeing them a greater degree of prosperity.
2 The Musician as Entrepreneur, 1700-1914, William Weber, Indiana University Press, Bloomington, 2004, p.10.
22 THE MANAGEMENT OF COMMUNICATION AND COMMERCIAL PRACTICE…
One of the most representative phases for musical freelancers was the Viennese Classicism Era. The first influential name, Joseph Haydn, the father of the symphony and string quartet, played a major role in consolidating self-management in musical careers. He had his family support and, even if he struggled to find his own profession for a long time, by alternating from being a music teacher and a street serenader, without having a special talent in composition, in 1758 he was appointed Director of the Bohemian count Ferdinand Maximillain von Morzin and 3 years later the vice-kapellmeister of the Esterházy musical establishment, job offered by Prince Paul Anton. Esterházy hungarian noble family, owner of a larger fortune, bigger than the Habsburg emperors, was known as an important figure for musical patronage in the eighteenth and nineteenth centuries. Was often associated with Joseph Haydn, who served for almost five years the princes Paul Anton, his brother Nikolaus “the Magnificent” and his son Paul Anton the 2nd. His duties were quite demanding, ranging from administrative responsibilities to monitoring the needs of musicians.
Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart was the first "gallant” superstar of the world who was buried in a mass grave, a man with an optimistic attitude and effervescent personality, cheerful and willing to speak to people through music. He remained famous in the history of the world because of the talent and the fulminating career built almost exclusively for pleasure. Mozart was born on 27 January 1756, in Salzburg. He lived 35 years, during which he wrote 626 works. He started playing a musical instrument when he was only 3, as a game, imitating his sister Nannerl. At 4 he was able to read the whole clavier book and to compose short pieces. Structured as an independent child, the young Mozart even tried to invent his own notation system, to be able to write down his hasty ideas. His first promoter was his father, Leopold, an exceptional violinist and an well prepared teacher who intuited the genius of Mozart and used all opportunities to popularize his talent: long tours, special concerts with moments of entertainment (where Mozart played with his eyes covered or using just one finger to play at the clavier). Leopold was criticized because of his exaggerated manner of exploiting his son, mainly when he decided to abandon his own career in order to have more time to prepare the child’s events. From that time Mozart became an important contributor to the family budget, his first serious payment of 100 ducats and an aristocratic costume being received when the child was only 6.
23 OANA M. BĂLAN
Due to the many trips Mozart had when he was young, he had the opportunity to learn English, French and Italian, skills that helped him join the high-class societies of each country he visited. At 28 he was initiated in Vienna Masonic Lodge and continued to be a Master Mason until the end of his life taking advantage of the serious support given through this network. The genius of Mozart was defined by his fantastic memory and by his talent of finding musical expressions of an intense consistency. When he was 14 he heard once Allegri’s Miserere in the Sistine Chapel in Rome – a work kept hidden by the community outside of the Vatican - being able to reproduce the whole score by memory a few hours later. During his life he raised some curiosities because / he did some curious things such as the fact that his pets which were considered to be an important source of inspiration (a dog, a horse, a starling) for his Piano Concerto no 17. At maturity, after having lost the title of "wonder child", he earned his existence from commissions, performances and private lessons. Although he earned good money, he was an exaggerated spender, alternating between poverty and luxury, offering more than he could afford: “While his annual income is generally estimated to have fluctuated between 800 and 3,800 Austrian florins—when you take into account his earnings from teaching, performance and publication, it is more likely that he was averaging 3,000 to 4,000 florins a year. That seems to make sense, considering that his German contemporary, Ludwig van Beethoven insisted on being paid no less than 4,000 florins. Wanting to maintain a certain level of lifestyle in the city, he clearly elaborated what his price was, and two princes and an archduke stepped in to make up his salary, which they committed to pay for life. At 0.945g of gold per florin, these two celebrated musicians’ wages of 4,000 florins come out to be nearly $150,000. Incredibly, if Mozart or Beethoven could have been teleported into our modern time, their salaries would buy them a perfectly comfortable lifestyle.”3 But those earnings were fluctuating. Critics talk about the existence of critical financial moments when Mozart had to choose between pleasured events and the well-paid events. Some influential people have changed Mozart's life: Leopold Mozart (his father, who taught him music and promoted him during the first years), Anna Maria – Nannerl Mozart (his sister, who inspired and motivated him), Constanze Weber (his wife, who loved and supported him along his late career), the “patron saint of mediocrities”4, Antonio Salieri (his rival whom Mozart
3 https://www.sovereignman.com/finance/historical-figures-salaries-in-gold-mozart-and- beethoven-15554/ 4 https://www.nytimes.com/1984/09/23/movies/music-view-never-mind-salieri-sussmayr-did- it.html
24 THE MANAGEMENT OF COMMUNICATION AND COMMERCIAL PRACTICE…
competed with all his life), his friends Joseph Haydn and Johann Christian Bach Jr., “the unsung hero behind Mozart’s Requiem”5 Franz Xaver Süssmayr (an Austrian composer and conductor, who copied Die Zauberflöteand La clemenza di Tito and was able to complete the Requiem, Sigismund von Schrattenbach the prince-archbishop of Salzburg (who appointed Leopold Mozart as member of the episcopal court orchestra being the first employer of Mozart’s family), the next archbishop of Salzburg Count Hieronymus (Wolfgang’s patrons and employers), Lorenzo da Ponte, the librettist (who contributed to Mozart’s success by writing the texts for Cosi fan tutte, Le nozze di Figaro, Don Giovanni). With his cleverness Mozart exploited all networks and people in his favor and remained a bohemian happy friend who loved being in contact with high-class societies. He loved to play billiards and was most of the time cheerful and good-humored, qualities that made him welcomed and respected within the community.
German composer with Flemish and Dutch origins, Ludwig van Beethoven was born in a family with strong traditions in musical career, both, his grandfather – Luis van Beethoven (bass singer) and his father – Johann van Beethoven (tenor, pianist, violinist), being employed at the archiepiscopal court in Bonn. Ludwig van Beethoven wrote 279 compositions and is considered to be a genius, mainly because he managed to overcome his health problems and to develop a high qualitative music, although his state was against a successful career in composition. All three men in Beethoven family (grandfather, father, son) had been appointed as kapellmeiters – choir and orchestra administrators – a responsibility that implied a serious supervise of the whole musical life at the court. By that time, the aristocracy had its own entertainment entities, private orchestras and events company (for operas, theatres and ballets), leaded by royal houses. The music education was part of the general culture which all nobiliary members must adopt, in order to be ready to take part of any intellectual meetings. Thanks to this opportunity, a common way to make money as a musician was by giving private lessons, actions that was intensely exploited by Beethoven family. Ludwig had 5 siblings but only 2 survived: Caspar Anton Carl and Nikolaus Johann, both intellectuals and business experts, with whom Ludwig had have close collaborations, mostly after their mother died and Ludwig had to take care of both.
5 https://csosoundsandstories.org/the-unsung-hero-behind-mozarts-requiem-franz-xaver- sussmayr/
25 OANA M. BĂLAN
Ludwig started his musical studies at 5, with his father, a harsh man, addicted to alcohol, frustrated because of his own failures. Being in a degradant state, without energy to work for improving his own image, Johann (Ludwig’s father) tried to take advantage of a presumed talent that his son might had, with the idea of showing that Ludwig is the “second Mozart”. For this dirty plan resorted to some brutal methods: violent behavior, excessive study even during the nights, punishments in the house basement etc. In 1778 his father organized Ludwig’s first concerts, asking some friends to come and listen the “second Mozart”. The performance was far for being a success. Moreover, Johann lied the public that the kid was with two years younger, hoping that this fact will have a strong impact on the audience. Shortly after this moment, Johann decided to ask the court organist (van den Eden), to give lessons to Ludwig, focusing on theory of music and the technics of keyboard instruments, probably because he felt himself being unable to learn his own son. In 1779 Christian Gottlob Neefe arrived in Bonn where he was invited to take the director position at the Archiepiscopal Theatre. He was the first important teacher who had a strong influence in Ludwig career. After two years of intensive work with Ludwig, Neefe decided to appoint him as personal assistant, investing him with serious and important responsibilities. Thus, at only 11, Ludwig had to organize important events and to replace Neefe every time he was out of the city. That period had a substantial impact in Ludwig life, because he gained confidence and impressed the nobiliary community. This result retuned later in some benefits he had by being accepted in the high-class society. At 19 Ludwig was known mostly as a performer and administrator than composer. He was seen around important music personalities: Franz Ries, Andreas Romberg (violinist), Bernhard Romberg (cellist), Nikolaus Simrock (corn player), Antoine Reicha (flutist). When he was 20, one of his brothers, Johann, known as an influent orator and business expert, commissioned his first composition, a cantata, which supposed to be played during an important final ceremony. Shortly after this moment, the royal court commissioned his second work, for an epoch ballet staged by the nobiliary local community. („Ritterballett”). For this second composition Ludwig’s name was not mentioned, therefore that music has remained with anonymous author. Because of his connections with the elector princes, Ludwig had the chances to meet Sterkel, one of the most important pianists, his friendly network being rapidly and consistently extended to valuable societies. In 1787, during a short visit he had to Vienna, Ludwig met Mozart with whom unfortunately did not have too much time to work. By that time Mozart was too preoccupated to finish his Don Giovanni Opera; in addition, his mother died shortly after his arrival, forcing him to return to Bonn. At 25,
26 THE MANAGEMENT OF COMMUNICATION AND COMMERCIAL PRACTICE…
helped with a scholarship given by church, he returned to Vienna where he met and worked with Haydn. The historians mention that the relations between Beethoven and Haydn were not too productive, mainly because Ludwig had a volcanic character and did not enjoyed too much working with Haydn and neither Haydn who took the first chance to move him to other teacher, one of the most known counterpoint experts in Vienna, Johann Georg Albrechtsberger. For a short period, Beethoven worked with Salieri, who used to give free lessons to young and talented musicians. At 26 the first deft symptoms show up, at the left ear at the beginning, caused by a neuronal degeneration mixed with a bone disses (known as Paget Disses). The bones started to reformed, changing Beethoven’s facial expression, the head and forehead grew exaggeratedly, the mouth and the chin became abnormal, the trunk was much bigger than the rest of the body, he had stomach pain, cardiac problems, headache, insomnia that make him be irascible. Francisco Grillparzer, an austriac libretist make mention of his state: “when he gets angry is like beast, a horrible man”. During the evenings another adverse effect was present, a disease characterized by sudden and inexplicable desire to move, to travel, turning him into a man with whom it was impossible to cohabitate. Because of the health problems, which were in contradiction with the needful state for a normal composer (let’s think only at the fine hearing that a musician must have for adjusting and perfect the musical message), Ludwig social isolate himself becoming a misanthrope man, without no willing to meet people. His works have grown in numbers with the same speed with which the diseases has advanced. A strong connection between the disease and the level of creativity were made, highlighting that for Beethoven music remain an important tool for communication. He putted in his music all his feelings and needs to survive. Due to his deafness, for a long period of time, he could not receive a permanent contract for his work, a needful stability in financial terms. Even if he was well seen by the aristocracy, Ludwig couldn’t integrate himself in a regular system – like being employed by an official institution - being totally dependent on the commissioned works. He did not had an official family. He felt in love many times but with unsuitable women (contests that would have lost the royal rank if they would official agreed in keeping a love relation with Beethoven). As emotional replacement, after his brother death, he received his nephew’s custody; it was speculated that actually that boy was his own son. Because he wanted so much to see some educative results on the boy’s life, we forced him to learn music (like his father did), which determined the boy to think at suicide. The relationship is quickly degrading and Ludwig remains completely alone until the end of his life.
27 OANA M. BĂLAN
The lack of a family, the health problems and the isolation from society were factors that contributed to a miserable state. Ludwig died of cirrhosis, probably because of the refuge he had found in alcohol. His mature works had a huge impact on public of those times and on the whole history of music. His "too complex", "too loud", "too heavy," style as he was then called, in which Ludwig dressed his unfriendly destiny, was actually the beginning of the Romantic Period, revolutionizing vocal- instrumental writing concepts and bringing to maximum the 19th century musical aesthetics.
Conclusions Music has the power to culturally, morally and emotionally influence our society. Cultural affinity is an important aspect that connects communities and motivates people to get involved in the artistic context. Through history, music was omnipresent and had a huge influence on humanity, defining cultural identities and helping people to express and experience emotions. The article radiographs some influential musicians from the Classicism Era who built strategies in awakening people, attracting them to music events, involving communities in the creative process, considering the real needs of audience as the main generators for new creations.
Translated from Romanian by Anda Ionescu
REFERENCES
Beeching, Angela Myles, Beyond Talent – Creating a successful career in music, Oxford Press, 2000 Weber, William, The Musician as Entrepreneur 1700 – 1914, Indiana University Press, 2004. Zakaras, Laura - Julia F.Lowell, Cultivating Demand for the Arts – Arts Learning, Arts Engagement and State Arts Policy, 2008. https://www.sovereignman.com/finance/historical-figures-salaries-in-gold-mozart- and-beethoven-15554/ accessed on Nov. 23, 2018. https://www.nytimes.com/1984/09/23/movies/music-view-never-mind-salieri- sussmayr-did-it.html accessed on Nov. 23, 2018 https://csosoundsandstories.org/the-unsung-hero-behind-mozarts-requiem-franz- xaver-sussmayr/ accessed on Nov. 23, 2018
28 STUDIA UBB MUSICA, LXIII, 2, 2018 (p. 29 – 36) (RECOMMENDED CITATION) DOI:10.24193/subbmusica.2018.2.03
DER MUSIKKRITIKER ZWISCHEN ROLLE UND VERANTWORTLICHKEITEN
CRISTINA ŞUTEU1
SUMMARY. Musical criticism examines, interprets, appreciates the value and gives orientation to the artistic phenomenon using argumentation based on concepts. As a “judge“ (gr. krités – κριτήσ),the critic use his power of discernment to evaluate both the composition and artistic act. This article presents concisely answers to four basic questions related to musical criticism: What is?;Whom is addressed to?; Which is the aim?; Who should write it?. An interdisciplinary perspective on music, analytical thinking, objectivity versus subjectivity, the ability to offer the whole perspective and at the same time to highlight the fine points – these are some of key indicators in the spectrum of values used in writing musical criticism.
Keywords: artist, public, analyticalsense, vocation, interdisciplinarity, subjectivity, objectivity, responsibility, adviser.
Die Kritik repräsentiert die gesamte musikalische Reflexion - vom Schöpfungsakt bis hin zu den verschiedenen Modellen der Interpretation, Diffusion und Wahrnehmung der Produktion - und damit einer organischen Seite des komplexen musikalischen Phänomens. Mit den Mitteln der Kritik werden neue Ideen, Meinungen, Begriffe verbreitet, sowohl die Schöpfung als auch die musikalische Interpretation sind Gegenstand von Werturteilen mit allen daraus resultierenden Konsequenzen. In diesem Beitrag werde ich versuchen, kurz auf vier grundlegende Fragen der musikalischen Kritik zu antworten: 1. WAS ist ein musikalischer Kritiker? 2. An WEM wendet sich der Musikkritiker? 3. WELCHES ist die Rolle des Musikkritikers? 4. WELCHE sind die Verantwortlichkeiten des Kritikers?
1 Asist. Univ. at Music Academy “Gheorghe Dima”, Department of Musicology and Musical Pedagogy, I.C. Bratianu Street, no. 25, 400079, Cluj-Napoca, Romania, www.amgd.ro, Email: [email protected].
29 CRISTINA ȘUTEU
1. WAS ist ein musikalischer Kritiker? Das Buch “The Oxford Companion to Music” qualifiziert eine musikalische Kritik als “intellektuelle Aktivität der Formulierung von Urteilen über den Wert”2. Im Griechischen bedeutet das Verb krino (κρινω)3 “trennen, entscheiden”4, das bedeutet, den Weizen von der Spreu zu trennen; das Nomen krités (κριτήσ) ist von diesem Begriff abgeleitet und bedeutet “Richter, eine Person zu erkennen”5. Das Wörterbuch “Oxford English Dictionary” identifiziert den Kritiker als “jemand, der das Urteil ausspricht [...]; eine Zensur, ein Fehlerfinder, ein Kavalier [...]; ein kunstvolles Urteil über die Qualitäten und Verdienste von literarischen oder künstlerischen Werken.”6 Kreativ und zugleich objektiv ist die musikalische Kritik, ein Werkzeug der künstlerischen “Qualitätsprüfung”7, das auf Meinungsargumentation basiert und ein Werturteil beinhaltet, welche ästhetische, technische und interpretative Aspekte berücksichtigt.
2. An WEM wendet sich der Musikkritiker? Die kritische Handlung hat ein doppeltes Ziel: den Künstler (Komponist oder Interpret) als “Kunstproduzent” und das Publikum als Konsument. Aber diese beiden Kategorien sind mit verschiedenen Problemen beschäftigt:
- der Künstler will wissen, wie gut er seine Rolle erfüllt und welche Auswirkung er auf das Publikum hatte; - das Publikum will die Botschaft des Künstlers „fangen“ oder verstehen.
Um den Bedürfnissen dieser beiden Kategorien gerecht zu werden, muss die vom Kritiker verwendete Sprache unterschiedlich sein: er muss professionell mit dem Künstler sprechen (mit einer mehr oder weniger
2 Bujić, Bojan, “Criticism of Music”, accessed in May 05, 2013, at link: http://www.oxfordreference.com/view/10.1093/acref/9780199579037.001.0001/acref- 9780199579037-e-171. 3 Lidell, Henry George - Scott, Robert, A Greek-English Lexicon, Clarendon Press, Oxford, 1996, p. 995-996. 4 McCormack, Dan, accessed in December 06, 2016, at link: http://www.etymonline.com/ index.php?allowed_in_frame=0&search=krinein&searchmode=none. 5 ***, Webster's Third New International Dictionary, vol. 1, Encyclopedia Britannica, Chicago, 1986, p. 538. 6 Dean, Winton, “Criticism”, in: The New Grove Dictionary of Opera, The Macmillan Press, London, 1994, vol. 1, p. 36. 7 Vartolomei, Luminiţa, „Responsabilitatea actului critic” [Die Verantwortung der kritischen Tat] in: Muzica, Editura Muzicală Publishing House, 1975, no. 11, p. 10.
30 DER MUSIKKRITIKER ZWISCHEN ROLLE UND VERANTWORTLICHKEITEN
technischen Sprache), und er muss eine angenehme Literatur anbieten (mit einer ästhetischen, umfassenden und attraktiven Sprache). An diesem Punkt wird der Kritiker ein Vermittler, der versucht, eine Verbindung zwischen Künstler und Publikum aufzubauen. So “kaut” er, verarbeitet die Informationen, bevor er sie weitergibt. Seine Wichtigkeit wird heutzutage symptomatisch, besonders, wenn sie an Leute von der Fast-Food-Welt gerichtet wird, die es vorziehen, mit dem “Fertigessen” zu leben. All diese Aspekte müssen in eine Maximalkompression und Effizienz einbezogen werden, die von Geschlechtshärte auferlegt sind.
3. WELCHES ist die Rolle des Musikkritikers? Als Führer oder Mentor im musikalischen Bereich muss der Kritiker betonen, was er für wertvoll hält und argumentiert, warum er so denkt. Winton Dean8 behauptet, dass ein Kritiker die folgenden Probleme so genau wie möglich beurteilen und aufklären muss:
- was versucht der Künstler zu tun; - inwieweit hat er es geschafft; - wie bezieht sich die Produktion auf andere Produktionen des Künstlers oder seiner Zeitgenossen.
Wenn die wertvolle Kunst das Ergebnis einer wertvollen Person ist, dann kann nur ein Kritiker mit einem hohen Sinn erwarten, die künstlerische Größe einer Produktion zu erkennen und zu schätzen. In diesem Sinne bestätigt der literarische Adrian Marino, dass das Ziel der Kritik ist “punerea în valoare a valorii” [einen Wert hervorzuheben].9 Alfred Andresch behauptet in dieser Hinsicht, dass “die kritische Handlung nicht für den Autor, sondern für das Publikum geschrieben ist”.10 Der Rezensent informiert das Publikum und schlägt ihm vor, eine Produktion zu akzeptieren, sie abzulehnen oder zu verstehen. Die Grundaufgabe des Kritikers von Anfang an ist es, das Publikum objektiv, exakt und umfassend über Inhalt und Form der Produktion zu unterrichten und danach die persönliche kritische Bewertung fortzusetzen.
8 ***, “Music Critics and Criticism Today”, in The Musical Times, Vol. 101, Nr. 1406, Musical Times Publications Ltd., 1960, p. 221. 9 Marino, Adrian, Introducere în critica literară [Einführung in die literarische Kritik], Editura Tineretului Publishing House, Bucharest, 1968, p. 144. 10 Munteanu, Romul, Metamorfozele criticii europene [Metamorphoses of European Criticism], Editura Univers Publishing, Bucharest, 1988, p. 462.
31 CRISTINA ȘUTEU
Im Wesentlichen versucht die Kritik, die Leser zu überzeugen, was und wie zuzuhören, in welcher Weise man sich der musikalischen Produktion nähert und welche Haltung sie mit dem Konzert besuchen müssen. Die Kritik nutzt, wählt, klassifiziert und zeichnet Analogien mit der Kunst der Litonten: sie neigt dazu, in wenigen Worten viel zu sagen, Meinungen und Wahrnehmungen vorzuschlagen, mit anderen Worten, an der Erziehung des öffentlichen Geschmacks teilzuhaben.
4. WELCHE sind die Verantwortlichen des Kritikers beziehungsweise die “Qualitäten des Kritikers”? Um seine Berufung mit maximaler Effizienz ausüben zu können, muss der musikalische Kritiker auf bestimmte scheinbar widersprüchliche Koordinaten “jonglieren” können. Dies ist eine unerlässliche Bedingung, um wenigstens die folgenden sieben Qualifikationen zu besitzen:
Analytical sense – Analytischer Sinn Developing ability – Entwicklungsfähigkeit Vocation – Berufung Interdisciplinary knowledge – Interdisziplinäres Wissen Subjectivity versus Objectivity – Subjektivität gegenüber Objektivität Experience – Erfahrung Responsibility – Verantwortung
4.1. Analytischer Sinn. Der Kritiker muss auf einer Seite das Ganze beobachten und auf der Anderen die Einzelheiten bemerken; zu betonen, was die Mehrheit verpasste, dass bedeutet, einen Schritt vor dem Publikum voraus zu sein. Er bringt Feinheiten in Bezug auf Phrasierung, Tonqualität, agogische Elemente, Dynamik, Stil, in einer Sprache, die zugänglich für unprofessionelles Publikum ist. Um die Produktion eines Komponisten zu beurteilen, ist es zwingend, seine gesamte Schöpfung zu kennen. Um zu entscheiden, ob ein Künstler fortschreitet, stagniert oder sich zurückentwickelt, muss man seine Entwicklung Schritt für Schritt überwachen.
4.2. Entwicklungsfähigkeit. Durch diese Qualität trägt er zur Entwicklung der Gegenwartskunst bei - ein nachhaltiges Handeln in der Zukunft. Diese Tatsache wird durch die Förderung der musikalischen Komposition, Produktion und die neue Generation von Künstlern erreicht und auf diese Weise hilft er dem Publikum, musikalische Kunst zu assimilieren. Im Laufe der Zeit werden die Auswirkungen der Erhaltung der künstlerischen Werte im Bewusstsein zukünftiger Generationen sichtbar.
32 DER MUSIKKRITIKER ZWISCHEN ROLLE UND VERANTWORTLICHKEITEN
4.3. Berufung. Der Kritiker ist mehr als ein fähiger und ehrlicher Richter. Er ist ein Lehrer mit Berufung und für ihn ist sein Werk eine “Bestimmung” nicht nur ein Beruf. Mosco Carner unterstützt diese Idee: “Der wahre Kritiker ist geboren, nicht gemacht”11. Ohne Intuition und Kreativität, ohne die Gabe, ursprüngliche Antworten anzubieten, wird der Kritiker die Essenz der ästhetischen Erfahrung nicht vermitteln können. In dieser Hinsicht nimmt der Kritiker die Natur des Künstlers an.
4.4. Interdisziplinäres Wissen. Es ist ratsam, dass ein Kritiker das Feld, in dem er arbeitet, sehr gut kennt. Luminiţa Vartolomei schreibt im Magazin “Muzica”, dass ein Kritiker ein Instrument spielen soll, aber er muss über allgemeine Kenntnisse aller anderen Instrumente verfügen; auch der Kritiker muss wissen, wie man dirigieren kann, und wie man komponieren kann, obwohl er das alles nicht tun muss.12 In diesem Sinne schlägt Martin Cooper vor, dass ein Kritiker “etwas über alles und jeden über etwas wissen sollte”13 – hier entsteht die interdisziplinäre Perspektive, die ästhetische Geschichte, Philosophie, Psychologie, ein umfassendes Allgemeinwissen und die Kunst des Schreibens materialisiert in einem bestimmten Stil.
4.5. Subjektivität gegenüber Objektivität. Ohne Emotionen kann die Kunst nicht geschaffen, durchgeführt, wahrgenommen oder beurteilt werden. Geschrieben ohne Leidenschaft, ohne affektive Beteiligung, ohne ein bisschen subjektiv zu sein, ist eine Kritik wie ein “Gedicht richtig von einem elektronischen Gehirn erstellt”14. Das gilt auch für den Zuhörer: er kann nicht objektiv sein, wenn es um Emotionen geht. Und ohne emotional involviert zu werden, wie konnte er behaupten, dass er die musikalische Produktion erlebt habe? Dieser Aspekt der Kritik wurde kategorisch von George Bernard Shaw ausgedrückt: “Nie in meinem Leben habe ich eine unparteiische Kritik geschrieben, und ich hoffe, dass ich die niemals kann[...] Den Einzelnen gerecht sein, auch wenn es möglich wäre, das Ende der Mittel zu opfern, was zutiefst unmoralisch wäre. Man muss natürlich die Tatsachen wissen, und dort kommt die Fähigkeit des Kritikers vor; aber eine Moral muss aus den Tatsachen gezogen werden, und das ist, wo versteckte Vorurteile herauskommen.”15
11 ***, Music Critics and Criticism Today, op. cit., p. 221. 12 Vartolomei, Luminiţa, op.cit., p. 10. 13 ***, Music Critics and Criticism Today, loc.cit. 14 Vartolomei, Luminiţa, op.cit., p. 10. 15 Dean, Winton, op.cit., p. 46.
33 CRISTINA ȘUTEU
Was heißt also objektiv? Der Kritiker muss eine Art Diplopie (=Doppelsehen) kultivieren. Sein Verstand muss zu derselben Zeit offen und anfällig sein. Er muss auf der einen Seite losgelöst und logisch sein, aber auf der anderen Seite muss er sich mit Empfindlichkeit und Emotionen beteiligen. Ein guter Kritiker wird Objektivität und Subjektivität ausgleichen. Auf diese Weise wird er die Argumentationskraft, die Demonstrationslogik, gewisse technische Kriterien, also die in der Kunst verwendete “Sichtung von Werten” anwenden, um den Weizen von der Spreu zu einer wertvollen Produktion von einer vergänglichen Kunst zu trennen.
4.6. Erfahrung. Je reicher und vielfältiger seine Erfahrung ist, desto korrekter und ausgewogener werden seine Urteile sein. Ein Kritiker, der seine Leser fühlt, dass sie "dort" waren - das Teilen von Freude und Bedauern beweist Erfahrung mit Virtuosität verbunden. Ein guter Kritiker weiß auf eine angenehme Art eine unangenehme Sache zu sagen. Der Kritiker muss zufrieden sein, wenn er schätzen und ermutigen kann. Wer würde eher Schmerz als Freude anbieten? Wenn ein ungünstiges Urteil ausgedrückt wird, muss es durch eine menschliche Vernunft und Taktik moderiert werden, weil der Ruf eines Menschen leicht beeinträchtigt werden kann. Aber diese Fähigkeit wird zusammen mit der Erfahrung erreicht.
4.7. Verantwortung. Der Kritiker ist vor Kunst und Publikum für jedes Wort, das er schreibt verantwortlich. Diese Qualität macht ihn furchtlos. Wenn er nicht angreift, was schlecht ist mit seinem ganzen Herzen, wird er unterstützen, was gut ist mit der Hälfte seines Herzens. Am Ende wird er seine Leser die “halbe Wahrheit” weitergeben, was eine “volle Lüge” ist. Aber er muss berücksichtigen, dass er sich mit lebenden Performern beschäftigt und er für ihre Gefühle verantwortlich ist.
Schlussfolgerungen: Diese sind nur wenige Verantwortlichkeiten oder Qualitäten des Kritikers, der wie ein BERATER (engl. ADVISER, entsprechend dem Akronym) ist: - ein tiefer analytischer Sinn; - Fähigkeit, Talente durch Förderung zu entwickeln; - Vokation, Berufung auf Kritik; - interdisziplinäre Perspektive auf das musikalische Phänomen; - Gleichgewicht zwischen Subjektivität und Objektivität; - langjährige Erfahrung; - Verantwortung gegenüber der Kunst im Allgemeinen.
34 DER MUSIKKRITIKER ZWISCHEN ROLLE UND VERANTWORTLICHKEITEN
Das Erreichen dieser Qualifikationen erfordert eine rigorose Anweisung des Verstands, aber es zitiert jedoch George Călinescu: “Nu poţi fi critic numai cu voinţă” [Sie können nicht mit dem Willen kritisieren]16. Die Qualität einer Kunstproduktion kann nicht nur durch einen Satz von Regeln definiert oder nachgewiesen werden; es muss zunächst erlebt werden. Obwohl das Ziel des Kritikers ist, die Produktion verständlich zu machen, um es zu erklären, legt der Kritiker niemals die Wirklichkeit der Musik frei, die immer “etwas” mehr zu sagen hat. Die Produktion muss verstanden werden und deshalb muss sie von innen wahrgenommen werden. Der sympathische Ansatz entspricht einem Beteiligungsakt und einer intellektuellen Leidenschaft. Beispielsweise ist J.S. Bach ein großer Komponist und offensichtlich, um ihn zu verstehen, müssen Sie von seiner Schöpfung leidenschaftlich sein und in sein musikalisches Universum kommen. Das gleiche gilt im Bereich der Kritik: Der Kritiker muss das musikalische Werk, den Stil des Komponisten und erst danach seine Meinung verstehen. Der Wert des Kritikers wird durch die Art und Weise gegeben, wie er es schafft, durch Worte die Wirkungsmusik auf ihn zu übertragen. Auf diese Weise bleibt die Kritik der genaue Spiegel oder der musikalische Lebensimpuls, ein stimulierender Faktor, der an der Schöpfung der Musikgeschichte beteiligt ist, die von einem gewissen Gesichtspunkt aus eine Synthese aller Jahrhunderte der Kritik ist.
Übersetzung ins Deutsche: Muthi Johann
REFERENCES
***, Das Neue Duden-Lexikon, Band 6 (Kras-Mone), Dudenverlag, Wien, 1989. ***, Meyers Universal Lexikon, VEB Bibliographisches Institut, Lepzig 1980, p. 628. ***, Music Critics and Criticism Today, in “The Musical Times”, Vol. 101, Nr. 1406, 1960, Musical Times Publications Ltd., pp. 220-225. ***, The World Book of Encyclopedia, World Book International, London, 1994, p. 442. ***, Webster’s Third New International Dictionary, vol. 1, (A to G), Encyclopedia Britannica, Merriam-Webster, Chicago, 1986, p. 538. Călinescu, George, Principii de estetică [Ästhetische Prinzipien], Editura Junimea Publishing House, Iaşi, 1996.
16 Călinescu, George, Principii de estetică [Ästhetische Prinzipien], Editura Junimea Publishing House, Iaşi, 1996, p. 106.
35 CRISTINA ȘUTEU
Dean, Winton, Criticism, in: “The New Grove Dictionary of Opera”, The Macmillan Press, London, 1994, vol. 1, pp. 36-50. Marino, Adrian, Introducere în critica literară, [Einführung in die literarische Kritik], Editura Tineretului Publishing House, Bucharest, 1968. Munteanu, Romul, Metamorfozele criticii europene moderne [Metamorphosen der modernen europäischen Kritik], Editura Univers Publishing House, Bucureşti, 1988. Vartolomei, Luminiţa, Critica muzicală, [Musikkritik] in: “Muzica”, Editura Muzicală Publishing House, Bucharest, 1984, no. 8, pp. 32-33. Vartolomei, Luminiţa, Responsabilitatea actului critic [Die Verantwortung der kritischen Tat], in: “Muzica”, Editura Muzicală Publishing House, Bucharest, 1975, no. 11, pp. 10-11.
Electronic resources:
Bujić, Bojan, Criticism of Music, http://www.oxfordreference.com/ accessed May 05, 2013. http://www.oxfordreference.com/view/10.1093/acref/9780199579037. 001.0001/acref-9780199579037-e-1716?rskey=hhTT4P&result=1 Lidell, Henry George, Scott Robert, A Greek-English Lexicon, Clarendon Press, Oxford, 1996 McCormack, Dan, http://www.etymonline.com/ accessed May 05, 2013, http://www.etymonline.com/index.php?allowed_in_frame=0&search=krinein& searchmode=none
36 STUDIA UBB MUSICA, LXIII, 2, 2018 (p. 37 – 46) (RECOMMENDED CITATION) DOI:10.24193/subbmusica.2018.2.04
THE UNIFYING POWER OF MUSIC IN MARSILIO FICINO’S VISIO
STELA DRĂGULIN1
SUMMARY. This paper emphasizes the most significant moments of Marsilio Ficino’s life and work. Due to his many talents and his expertise in various areas (Philosophy, religion, sciences) his creation greatly influenced the works of important Renaissance figures. The most important ideas and concepts in Ficino’s writings and their relationship with the values and achievements of his time are described herein. Ficino’s translations of important Platonical writings as well other classical Greek authors contributed to a change in the concepts of the Catholic church officials. Ficino’s interpretations and comments about the classical ancient works opened a new perspective on how of human reason relates to religious belief. He outlined a new interpretation of the concept of „human being” as seen by the religious and secular authorities.
Keywords: power of music, philosophy, cosmic harmony, Ficino.
1. Introduction The revival of interest regarding Classical Antiquity, also known as the Renaissance, occurred at different times and in different forms in painting, literature, philosophy, music and medicine (Perkins, 1999). As regards music therapy, there was a crucial period; it is about the 15th, 16th and the beginning of the seventeenth century, when therapy through music was centred on philosophy, when it gained cultural value and, unlike before, was reconsidered and appreciated by the scholars of Europe. At that time, an integrated vision of music emerged in European thinking, which included both the ethos and the cosmos. It was thought that music could have beneficial effects on humans because of its astrological significance as a mirror of the deep structure of the universe. The Pythagorean- Platonical tradition of Antiquity combines two trends: the ethical and the astrological, but they were not fully integrated. Correspondence between planets, zodiac signs, musical sounds, chemical elements, humours were
1 Prof. PhD Habil Transilvania University of Brașov, Music Faculty, [email protected]
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carefully researched by Muslim scholars. Their works did not influence European thinking because the most important texts were not translated into Latin. If Plato is the most important figure of Antiquity, Aristotle with his scepticism about sphere music takes his place in the Middle Ages. Music has therapeutic value at that time because of its power to appease the soul’s accidents, not because it would reproduce cosmic harmony in the human structure. From the perspective of music therapy, the Renaissance period is considered as a time of revival of Platonism in the mid-fifteenth century and its absorption into the wider magic world, a magic that could be called more accurately, “occult philosophy” (Tomlinson 1993, 291-306). The sources of this philosophy are different; these are texts of Arabic origin (which were accessible to Christian scholars in Spain recaptured from the Islamic world) or Jewish Kabbalah. There are several scholars who are representatives of the Platonian revival (Tomlinson 1993, 77). Among them, the most outstanding is the philosopher-physician- musician Marsilio Ficino (1433-1499). Songs from the Second Orpheus were created to eliminate the soul and body disorders through musical sounds appropriate to the stars. Ficino searched for classical and late antique texts about music therapy, different from what existed in the Middle Ages. His work was the starting point for more discussions, especially among the occult philosophers. Doctors, musicologists reproduce common place ideas taken from the Bible, or from Pythagoras’ philosophy, about the power of music (Institutione harmoniche, 1558, Gioseffo Zarlino 1517-1590) (Webster, 1982). Occult philosophers are the ones who bring new ideas, by subtly reinventing the Pythagorean cosmology. They are important for their work and for being the link with what might be called the Scientific Revolution as well as the religious reforms of the early modern, Catholic and Protestant period.
2. The Philosophy of Marsilio Ficino Florentine philosopher Marsilio Ficino (1433-1499) is one of the leading scholars of the great spiritual and cultural revival called Renaissance. As a priest, theologian, astrologer, physician, musician and magician he dedicated his whole life to the reconciliation between faith and reason, seeking self-knowledge and knowledge of God. At intellectual level, he tried to unite Platonism and Christian religion, while at practical level, his holistic approach on healing and therapy provided a new way of understanding the world: natural magic. Ficino’s magic is based on Hermetic, Neoplatonic and Arabic texts which he combined with his medical, astrological and music knowledge. He tried to put the human soul, who was seen as an intermediary
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between mind and body, in harmony with the soul of the world, mediating between heaven and earth. Ficino showed that the most powerful means of restoring this union was music or therapy through music. In addition to his writings, there is a lot of evidence that the way Ficino interpreted music made his listeners call him Orpheus. It appears that Ficino acquired the vocation of healing the human spirit already from an early age. He even tells us that while he was still young, he was chosen by Cosimo de Medici to lead his Platonic Academy. Ficino translated the works of Plato as well as the recently discovered Corpus Hermeticum, written by Hermes Trismegistus, an old magus whose spiritual revelation prefigured Plato’s religious philosophy. Even before the hermetic texts were translated, Ficino had discovered Orpheus and translated his hymns into Latin, also describing their mysterious power. In his preface to Commentaries on Plato we find the idea that true self-knowledge can only be achieved by understanding and practicing a kind of astrology that is far from the deterministic science of classical tradition. Ficino believes that Philosophy, the daughter of Minerva, is the one who urged Lorenzo de Medici to enter the Platonic Academy. This invitation is seen as an urge for humanity to embark on a journey into wisdom. Ficino considers astrology to be a symbolic language capable to reveal the inner workings of divinity. In the heavens, as well as on earth, in the Neoplatonist and hermetic vision of the cosmos, heavenly bodies were gods and their movements indicated the will of the supreme god, their souls being part of the vast network starting with animated beings and reaching all the way down to inanimate matter. Thus, their energies can be understood, tempered and harmonized within the human soul, seen as a microcosmos with the help of music, because Plato’s followers understood the sound as an echo of perfect harmony in the heavens. By imitating the music of the spheres, the soul rises above its human condition by regaining its original, pure state. The source of this idea is found in Plato’s Timaeus where he states that listening to music and contemplation of the heavens are essential to self-understanding. Also, in this text there is a myth of creation that demonstrates the musical principle of the proportions underlying the whole universe, because the demiurge has divided the mixture of cosmic mind and matter in proportions of 2: 1, 3: 2, and 4: 3. These generate accurate intervals of the octave, the quarte and the quint, and are believed to represent the creation by sound. Ficino found the philosophical basis for his magical practice in the Neoplatonist Plotinus. To him, the cosmos has soul; it is the soul of the
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world, anima mundi, the one who unites the pure ideas of the divine mind with the middle realm of the stars and planets and the earth’s realm of matter. The soul transforms ideas into instruments, puts the sublunar world in motion, planting in each being a drop of divinity, which Plotinus called the seed of wisdom. There is an energy travelling between the mind, soul and nature that Ficino calls the circuitus spiritualis, “a divine influence from God that passes through the heavens, descends through the elements, and reaches into matter” (Ficino, 234.). For Ficino, astrology has become the means he used to work on these consequences as they manifested themselves as planetary energies within the human soul. Plotinus maintains that magic works through “attraction and the fact that there is a natural understanding of things that resemble and an opposition between things that are different and that make up the life of an animate being” (Plotinus 1966-1988, 261). Incantations, along with the attitude and intent of the participant, exercise a natural power over the irrational part of the soul, which must be brought in a more orderly state. These powers that can be acquired from the stars do not have their own will but are found in the cosmic tides. Plotinus suggests that the physician or the quack can enter this interplay of natural forces. In Ficinian magic, the specific level of vocal and instrumental music (musica instrumentalis), in the concrete form of musical interpretation or when it manifests itself as work of art, becomes the vehicle that leads to the clarification and harmonization of the soul (musica humana), by conveying the latter towards the great cosmic dance. Ficino has named the third part of his treaty about magic Matching the Soul with the Cosmos (De Vita coelitus comparanda). He points out that his magic is not an ordinary one, and that life itself can be seen as a magic ritual. In this context, we begin to understand the meaning of Orpheus’ song for Ficino, which can be used to harmonize the soul with the help of spiritus, imitating musica mundana, harmony of spheres. Plotinus urges man to “close his eyes and wake up to another way of seeing, which everyone has, but few use it” (Plotinus1966-1988, 259). This kind of seeing can be developed through prayer, “a tension of the soul,” an act of true reconnection in the true sense of religion. If our deeper desires are in resonance with the forces of the universe, conscious connection will open up the channels, and these forces will penetrate the human being. This ritual facilitates spiritus fusion by subjectively transforming the one who prays, by means of invocations. This changed state of mind involves the cessation of logical thinking and can be obtained by using certain rituals. Iamblichus, another Nonplatonic, also speaks of the importance of ritual attitude.
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Gemisthos Pletho, a Byzantine Platonian who brought to Florence, in the 15th century, the complex system of hymn singing, may have influenced Ficino. Pletho considers the process to be self-purifying, modelling, and marking our own imagination, thus making the latter obedient and malleable to all that is divine in us. To Ficino, the way Plato used language, could captivate and remove the mind from rational worries, just as the musician can bring the listener in accord with the cosmic harmony, transmitting through his performance a music that can only be heard with “the ears of the mind”. And so, we return to Orpheus who had this capacity which Ficino was also targeting.
3. Ficino’s music It is obvious that Ficino believed that his healing vocation also referred to body and mind diseases and music was very important for his work. Indeed, after the mind came into harmony, the body followed: “the sound and the song stir imagination, influence the heart and reach the most hidden recesses of the mind; they appease and move the humours and limbs of the body ... All living beings are fascinated by harmony, “he says in a letter to Antonio Canigiani and adds,” Even I often use the lyre and play to avoid other sensual pleasures. I dismiss the discomforts of the soul and body and to lift my mind to God as much as I can” (Ficino,141-144). It is clear that to Ficino, music was not only used for his personal enjoyment, since he often mentions in letters the therapeutic effects of “his orphic lyre” on his friends. In a letter to Sebastiano Foresi, he says: “We play the lyre, so we never end up with weakened nerves ... let the lyre always be our salvation when we use it properly.” (Ficino, 16-17). And on another occasion, he says: “After I wrote you goodbye, I got up and took the lyre. I began to play a long song from the Orphic Liturgy. And when you have read this farewell, if you are wise, you will rise up and take the lyre, sweet comfort of your labour” (Ficino, 823-824). He wrote to his friend Giovanni Cavalcanti, who said that Ficino was complaining too much about his Saturnian temperament: “You’re telling me to play a hymn of silence to Saturn that I’ve been complaining about lately. I really complain about a melancholic state, an unpleasant thing if it could not be improved by using the lyre” (Ficino, 33). An example of successful treatment is that applied to Francesco Musano, who writes: “As soon as you have been healed of what was mistakenly said to have been intermittent fever, you and Giovanni Aurelio have expressed your respect to the Academy as if it had been your doctor. Then you asked to listen to the lyre and the hymns” (Ficino, 609).
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Ficino’s music creates a state of solidarity in his audience. What makes him improvise with such talent and obtain such a result is the poet’s furor divinus, the state of spiritual mastery which is mandatory for communicating divine truth, the experience of submerging the soul into the process of reconnecting with the source. According to Plato there are four types of furore: that of the poet, that of the priest, that of the prophet, and that of the lover. The creation of the “inspired madman”, as Plato calls him in Phaedrus, goes beyond the efforts of the one who thinks it is enough to master the technique to be a good artist. Ficino admires the musician’s frenzy so much that he goes farther than Plato and says that “any madness, prophetic, religious, or amorous, is considered poetic madness when expressed through songs and poetry” (Ficino 1981, 84). In other words, musical frenzy is the vocal expression of the other three and turns the musician into a divine messenger. Orpheus’s image becomes even more significant since Ficino considered him to be full of all four madness: as priest, prophet, lover, and musician. Under all these disguises lays the power of love that he brings to the world, and the Neo-Platonic magic is only effective by creating harmony through love with the cosmic hierarchies. Ficino is the one who invented the term platonic love, referring to love between two people, love that derives from their love for God.
4. Ficino’s Cosmic Harmony From Matching the Soul with the Cosmos (De vita coelitus comparanda), it can be found that Ficino sank into the world of natural magic where talismans, herbs, plants, animals, colours, ointments and aromas and especially music played an important role in calming the soul. Ficino says the strength of the remedy lies in the patient’s attitude towards it. He also states that the most excited speaker will excite the others and in his commentary on Timaeus he says: “The musical sound, more than anything else, conveys, as if it had life, the emotions and thoughts of the singer or the musician to the listener” (Ficino, 1417). Matching the Soul with the Cosmos includes a chapter (21) which is dedicated to „the power of words and songs” to obtain heavenly gifts. This chapter describes the way of composing or improvising astrological music. It starts by emphasizing the power that words have when used in combination with the right images, and then explains how music harmony of different heights passes through the seven steps that correspond to the seven planets; they range from rocks to metals, which are attributed to the Moon and Saturn.
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The words, songs, and sounds that are dedicated to Apollo or the Sun are the most powerful. Thus, divine harmony reflects and refracts by moving through the whole creation. Through this system of correspondence, natural substances are impregnated with divines in fluxus from a particular planet, because the seed of wisdom is randomly planted by the Soul of the World. All levels of creation are a part of the divine, therefore these substances can be effective remedies using medicine and astrology. At the same time, music can be given a “heavenly power” if we consider what Ficino calls the pattern of the stars and whether sounds that match this pattern are chosen and then arranged in order and harmony that reflects the heavenly arrangement. As regards the choice of music as a remedy, it is necessary to take into account the planets that are dominant at the birth of the patient, and which ones impart his qualities to his soul. Ficino points out that it is difficult to decide which sounds match with a specific planet, but this can still be discovered partly through work and partly with the help of fate, divina sorte and a flow of grace. As its intensity grows, it turns into frenzy when the soul is in perfect alignment with the divine power and is no longer sensitive to its human condition. Ficino offers three strange musical and astrological rules to match sounds with the stars. First, he warns that it is not to be thought that he is idolizing the stars but merely trying to imitate them. He emphasizes that the stars do not transmit their gifts of their choice but through natural influx, influxus naturalis.
“First of all, it must be found out what power and what effects has the star, what it brings and what it takes. Then, these meanings must be introduced in the meanings of our words so we can reject what it takes and appreciate what it brings. Secondly, we need to find out which planet dominates a place or a person and then see what sounds and songs are used in this region or by this person so that we can use some of them similar to the meanings of words. Thirdly, the daily position and the aspects of the planets must be observed, and what songs, speeches, movements, dances, moral behaviours and actions are generated in humans by these planets, to be then reproduced in songs to please that part of the heaven, to acquire the power that in stills them” (Ficino, 357-358).
The power of such a match is so great that the spirit of the performer will open to influxus celestis which in its turn will open to him and the spirit of the music will have access to his spirit and then to the listener’s spirit. Ficino presents what kind of music fits with each planet, emphasizing that all music
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comes from Apollo, the Sun, and that Jupiter is musical only when in harmony with them. Venus and Mercury are also musical when they are near the Sun. He points out that Saturn, Mars and the Moon have a voice or sound, but they do not sing. Saturn’s sounds are slow, deep, harsh and crying; those of Mars are fast, sharp, violent and threatening; those of the Moon are “in the middle”. As for the music of the other planets, Jupiter has deep and intense harmonies, “lovely and cheerful”, Venus’s songs are voluptuous and Apollo’s music is graceful, respectful and simple, and Mercury full of vigour and joy. “By choosing to invoke a god with his proper music, you will surely receive his gifts; and prayer has the same power as a song. As we expose our body to the rays of the sun, we expose the spirit of the hidden powers of the planets”. Ficino, when talking about his therapy, says that each individual can increase the healing power of the remedy by positive thinking and by liberating the imagination. Ficino talks about the intersection of subjective and objective experiences, and that status changes are facilitated if the interpreter and the listener (or the therapist and the patient) meet on the ground of imagination, the place from which one can access higher realms and from where spiritual healing can be generated. The liber de vita instructions are quite vague with regard to imitation techniques for the position and aspects of the planets through words and music.
5. Music and Cosmic Harmony In the Principles of Music, in a letter written to Domenico Benivieni, Ficino tells about the astrological aspects and musical intervals and the “true music” that God has given us, the harmony of the mind. Ficino speaks about the “gentle harmony of the third” and describes the qualities of consonant and dissonant harmonies in a musical range, about the perfection of the octave that he sees as a reflection of the hermeneutical procession of the soul. He also explains how different intervals can occur and is very interested in the “astronomical causes of harmony”. The strong influence of Ptolemy’s Third Book, Harmonics is noted. Ficino compares the qualities of astrological aspects with musical intervals:
“Beginning from the end of the twelve zodiac signs and proceeding sequentially, it can be noticed how the second sign falls away from the first as in a musical range the second note is different from the first, but the third zodiac sign has a favourable aspect compared with the first, an element that astrologers call sextil ...”
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How he embodied his theory in his orphic songs is only speculation. It is merely known that there was a tradition of improvvisatori, singers who accompanied themselves with the lira da braccio, and Ficino may have called the lyre, the “orphiclyre”. From the pictures of the time, it can be found out that the lyre was actually associated with Orpheus, and the singer Baccio Ugolino interpreted it in the Orfeo drama in Mantua, in 1471. It is also possible that Ficino played the harp as seen in a sculpture carved by Ferrucci. Ficino is presented holding a volume of Plato in the position where the harp would have been held. It can be certainly assumed that Ficino’s music was a monodic semi-improvising made on the lyrics of orphic hymns or astrological or mythological texts written by him. If Ficino intended to achieve the “moderation of the heavenly signs” by means of his orphic lyre, it means that Orpheus received the most noblest embodiment possible.
6. Conclusions The period of the European Renaissance stands out due to its profound changes involving characteristic aspects of Europe’s societies in the 15th century. Among the early promoters of the Renaissance in Italy, Ficino is recognized as a pro-active factor of stability and influence on Florence’s cultural and social scene. His influence on the way of thinking and action of most important European rulers and scholars of the time was a significant one. Ficino’s ideas about the human being and the way he imagined man’s immortal soul triggered a wave of intense creativity in fine arts, music, literature, and philosophy. Under Ficino’s leadership the Platonic Academy of Florence left its hallmark on Italy’s society. Many influent figures of Florence’s society, among which Lorenzo de Medici, Leon Battista Alberti, and Pico della Mirandola, came together under its auspices. A great number of Renaissance creators and intellectuals were also influenced by and inspired from Ficino’s ideas. Ficino’s wide expertise in multiple scientific and artistic domains as well as his classic languages proficiency allowed him to perform accurate and complete translations into Latin of numerous writings of the classical Greek philosophers. In many of his writings he lays the emphasis on the immortality of the soul, a previously largely disregarded concept, whose effect materialized in a significant religious awakening. One of the most important consequences of the latter was the introduction of the concept into the doctrine of the Roman Catholic Church as was pronounced by the Lateran Council.
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Ficino’s writings provide helpful elements in approaching modern themes centred around the relationship between individual and authority in present-day society. His ideas outline general guidelines for interpreting the individual’s personal autonomy and creativity within the general frame of leadership and authority seen as a nucleus of decision makers, and the ways of reconciliation among these entities.
REFERENCES
***, The Letters of Marsilio Ficino, Trans. The Language Department of the London School of Economics, 8 vols., London, Shepheard-Walwyn Ltd., 1975-2010. Allen, Michael, The Platonism of Marsilio Ficino: A Study of His Phaedrus Commentary, Its Sources and Genesis, Berkeley, University of California Press, 1984. Copenhaver, B-P., Schmitt, C.B., Renaissance philosophy. Oxford, Oxford University Press, 1992. Ficino, Marsilio, Allen, Michael J. B., Marsilio Ficino and the Phaedran Charioteer: Introduction, Texts, Translations, University of California Press, 1981. Ficino, M., Three Books on Life. (De vita libri tres). Carol V. Kaske, John R. Clark (eds.), Medieval & Renaissance Texts & Studies in conjunction with the Renaissance Society of America, 1989. Ficino, Marsilio, Opera Omnia, 2 volumes, Basel, 1576. Lindberg, D.C., Westman, R.S. (eds.), Reappraisals of the Scientific Revolution, Cambridge, Cambridge University Press, 1990. Maxwell-Stuart, P.G., The Occult in Early Modern Europe: A Documentary History, London and New York, Macmillan Education UK, 1999. Perkins, L. Leeman, Music in the Age of the Renaissance, Ed. W.W. Norton, New York and London, 1999. Plotinus, Armstrong, A.H., Plotinus: in seven volumes, Harvard University Press, 1979. Plotinus, Enneads III, Arthur Hilary Armstrong (ed.), Harvard University Press, 1967. Schmitt, C.B., The Cambridge History of Renaissance Philosophy, Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 1988. Siraisi, Nancy. Avicenna in Renaissance Italy: The Canon and Medical Teaching in Italian after 1500, Princeton, Princeton University Press,1987. Tomlinson, Gary, Music in Renaissance Magic: Toward a Historiography of Others, Chicago and London, University of Chicago Press, 1993. Vickers, B. Occult and Scientific Mentalities in the Renaissance, Cambridge, Cambridge University Press, 1984. Wear, A., French, R.K., The Medical Renaissance of the Sixteenth Century, Cambridge, Cambridge University Press, 1985. Webster, Charles. From Paracelsus to Newton: Magic and the Making of Modern Science. Cambridge; New York, Cambridge University Press, 1982.
46 STUDIA UBB MUSICA, LXIII, 2, 2018 (p. 47 – 56) (RECOMMENDED CITATION) DOI:10.24193/subbmusica.2018.2.05
THE EFFECT OF PREGNANCY ON THE SINGING VOICE
TAMÁS J. ALTORJAY – ÁDÁM PERÉNYI – GÁBOR ÁDÁM 1
SUMMARY. In the scientific literature, we noticed that the effect of pregnancy on the singing voice is scarcely investigated. We investigated a well-educated professional mezzo, during the third trimester and after the child-birth. We recorded her singing voice weekly, after 15 minute long warming-up. First we recorded sustained vowels [a, i, u] on a comfortable pitch and volume, for measuring MPT, SNR and SPR. Secondly we surveyed VRP. As third-step she repeated sentences, for analysing the mean of F0 of speaking vowels. We expanded our investigation by observations with rigid endoscopy and fiberscope, and also with spirometry. During the pregnancy the MPT decreased by every vowel. The SNR decreased by every vowel, mostly at the last 3 weeks of pregnancy. The VRP also decreased mostly in the upper range. The F0 of the speaking vowels slightly increased. We found slight oedema on the vocal folds first only on the 37th week. 4 weeks after the child-birth a small polyp was detected on the left vocal fold. 6 weeks after child-birth the oedema and the polyp resolved. With spirometry we found slightly increase of FVC and FEV1 during the third trimester.
Keywords: pregnancy, third trimester, oedema, VRP, nursing.
Introduction During the overview of scientific literature we noticed that the effect of pregnancy on the singing voice is scarcely investigated. It is understandable because the topic is finical. To find well educated, professional singer with performing experiences is rather difficult. Our assumptions were that because of changes in gender-hormone level, increases:
1 Tamás ALTORJAY: University of Szeged, Hungary, Institute of Education. E-mail: [email protected]. Ádám PERÉNYI: Department of Otorhinolaryngology, Head and Neck Surgery, E-mail: [email protected]. Gábor ADÁM: Department of Pulmonology. E-mail: [email protected]. Phone number: 0636/3601612
47 TAMÁS J. ALTORJAY – ÁDÁM PERÉNYI – GÁBOR ÁDÁM
- Oedema in the neck, in the vocal folds - Blood abundance in the larynx - Symptoms of reflux - Hindered breathing - Hindered phonation
In the recent literature Cassiraga1et.al. investigated 44 pregnant and 45 non-pregnant women. The participants were not singers. They observed:
- Decrease in MPT (Maximal Phonation Time) - Increase in reflux level - Increased voice volume in speech - Increased perturbation of phonation - Hindered breathing - Heightened breathing up to clavicle level
La2 and Sundberg made a complex research with one singer. They found:
- Hindered phonation, - Decrease of MPT - Decrease of alfa-ratio - Decrease of the brightness of the voice, - Increase of BMI (Body Mass Index)
Hancock3 and Gross made a complex research with one pregnant speech-language pathologist. Their experiences:
- Decrease of brightness of the voice - Increase of perturbation of the voice - Constant MPT
Saltürk4 et al. investigated 50 pregnant, non-singer women. Distribution of the participants, were as follows: 18 person was in first, 17 in second, 15 in the third trimester during the inquire. Their results:
- The reflux increased in the first and third, the VHI (Voice Handicap Index) in the third trimester - The MPT decreased in the third trimester (significantly!) - The parameters of the voice quality – F0, jitter, shimmer, NHR (Noise to Harmonic Ration), voice range – did not differ significantly!
This overview proved that the results are partly contradictory, and only in one study2 was the participant professional singer.
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Method: In our investigation a 24 years old mezzo soprano took part. She finished her master degree at the University, as a classical singing student. She belongs to the 4. regional / touring category – according to taxonomy by Bunch and Dayme. She has already significant experiences as an oratorio singer. We investigated her at the third trimester of her pregnancy. We recorded her singing and speaking voice weekly from the 29th to 40th week, with Roland/Edirol R-44R Channel Recorder and AKG 2000B microphones, supplied with 40 cm long distance consol. We used distance consol for insuring the permanent distance, from the lips to the microphones. We supplemented our inquirement with fiberoscopy (70 grad, Karl Storz rigid endoscopy), for observing the function of the vocal gap, and also with spirometry (SensorMedics Vmay), for measuring the breathing capacity. The whole transaction happened from beginning of November 2016 to the end of March 2017.
Procedure: the participant came to the studio at every week without any previous warming-up. There she achieved at every occasion a 15 minute long task-range. The tasks consisted of breathing, humming, texted tasks using consonants formed with lips [b], soft palate [g], throat [h] and different vowels, beginning on middle voice approaching the ends of her tessitura. After this three tasks were recorded: 1. sustained vowels [a, i, u] on f#4, (in the middle of her voice range) on a comfortable volume. 2. decrescendo on sustained vowels [a, i, u], from forte to piano on the whole tessitura, in little second steps. 3. reading two artificial, but meaningful Hungarian sentences with normal speaking voice. One sentence consisted of only syllables with deep, velar vowels, the other only with high, palatal vowels. From the three recordings we analysed undermentioned parameters: MPT (Maximal Phonation Time), Range of voice, VRP (Voice Range Profile), SNR (Signal To Noise Ratio), SPR (Singing Power Ratio = [2-4 kHz/0-2 kHz]), F0 (mean of speaking fundamental frequency). For analysing the records we used SIGVIEW 2.4. acoustic program. We observed the function and the condition of the vocal folds four times – on the 31th, 37th of pregnancy, and on 4th, 6th weeks after child-birth – with rigid endoscopy, and fiberoscopy, while the participant formed [a, i] vowels. For analysing the FVC (Forced Vital Capacity) and FEV1 (Forced Expiratory Volume in 1 second) we used spirometry three times before – on the 31th, 34th, 38th weeks – and one time after – on 4th week – child-birth.
Results: The MPT decreased at all vowels, during the third trimester definitely, but the reconstruction of the conditions before, did not began unambiguous, during the first 6 weeks after child-birth. The tendencies are the same at every vowel. Look at the Table 1. and the
49 TAMÁS J. ALTORJAY – ÁDÁM PERÉNYI – GÁBOR ÁDÁM
E.g. 1
Weeks MPT [sec] [a] [i] [u] 29th 14,20 16,60 15,40 30th 14,74 16,80 16,30 31th 15,60 18,30 18,00 32th 13,80 15,60 14,80 33th 13,70 14,40 13,20 34th 13,00 14,50 16,00 35th 12,10 13,90 12,90 36th 15,10 15,40 15,00 37th 12,30 13,20 13,60 38th 13,00 16,45 14,15 39th 13,60 15,10 13,30 40th 11,40 14,20 13,40 2th 12,95 15,80 15,80 6th 13,00 12,50 14,00
Table 1: MPT values in [sec]
Graphic 1: trends in MPT alterations
On the horizontal axis the number of the weeks, on the vertical axis the alteration of the range of voice (values show the distance from the middle tone [f#4] in semitones) is visible. The range of voice decreased during the third trimester step by step, mainly in the upper part of the range. Look at Graphic 2.
50 THE EFFECT OF PREGNANCY ON THE SINGING VOICE
E.g. 2
Graphic 2: The alteration of voice range
The Graphic 3. shows that the VRP during the third trimester drops down dinamically. During the first six weeks after child-birth the range of voice stays diminished, but the volume capacity of the singing voice began to increase. We have to emphasize also that the so called “appogio”-gap between g#4 and c5 is permanently visible on the figures, but before child- birth a second gap appears between c4 and e4 as well. It seems that the energy for well balancing diminishes at the end of the third trimester.
E.g. 3
Graphic 3: The alteration of voice capacity (VRP)
VRP (on vertical axis [sign strength] - proportional with volume - on horizontal sound levels)
51 TAMÁS J. ALTORJAY – ÁDÁM PERÉNYI – GÁBOR ÁDÁM
E.g. 4
Graphic 4: SNR at forte volume (vertical axis [dB], horizontal [weeks])
We analyzed the Signal to Noise Ration (SNR) at vowel [a] on forte volume. On the middle [f#4] sound level the ration increases, but on the extreme sound levels [a3, c5], as we assumed decreases. During short period – 6 weeks – after child-birth resolved alterations do not appear (Graphic 4).
E.g. 5
Graphic 5: SNR at piano volume (vertical axis [dB], horizontal [weeks])
52 THE EFFECT OF PREGNANCY ON THE SINGING VOICE
We analyzed the Signal to Noise Ration (SNR) at vowel [a] on piano volume as well. The piano volume seemed to react more sensitive as the forte one. At every sound level showed more strongly resolved decrease as the forte one. During short period – 6 weeks – after child-birth the decreasing trends stayed on (Graphic 5). E.g. 6
Graphic 6: SPR forte voice of sustained [a] vowel, on three sound levels
The Graphic 6 above show that the SPR (the ration of the volume of the strongest overtone between 2-4kHz and 0-2kHz) show waving, but unambiguously decreasing during the third trimester. After child-birth the tendency alters immediately. E.g. 7
Graphic 7: the alteration of F0 [Hz] of different speaking vowels. (On the vertical axis the sound level [Hz], on the horizontal the weeks are visible)
53 TAMÁS J. ALTORJAY – ÁDÁM PERÉNYI – GÁBOR ÁDÁM
We noticed a slightly elevation of the tuning of every vowel – both palatal and velar - during the pregnancy, and a slowly sinking after child–birth. The elevation tendency is stronger for deep, velar vowels (Graphic 7).
E.g. 8
Picture 1: view of Endoscopy four weeks after child-birth: polyp is visible on the left vocal fold.
It was a real surprise – appearance of the polyp - four weeks after child birth, because at former inquiry, on the 37th week of pregnancy only little oedema was visible on the vocal folds. We assumed that after child birth the condition of the vocal folds will be regenerated in few weeks. After this inquiry we offered voice relaxing for the participant. Two weeks later the polyp disappeared, the condition and the function of the vocal folds were already again healthy (Picture 1). Spirometry: we found slightly increase of FVC (Forced Vital Capacity), and FEV1 (Forced Expiratory Volume in 1 second) during the third trimester, and expressed decrease four weeks after the child-birth (Table 2).
54 THE EFFECT OF PREGNANCY ON THE SINGING VOICE
E.g. 9
Reference 31th week 34th week 38th week Aft.4 week FVC 3,73 3,81 3,89 4,03 3,74 FEV1 3,25 2,90 2,98 3,13 2,65
Table 2: the values measured with spirometry in [lit]
E.g. 10
Graphic 8: the expiration functions on the 31th, 38th week of pregnancy, and on the 4th week after child birth are visible
We noticed that the expiration calms down steep before and mild after child-birth (Graphic 8).
Conclusion: Of course from a case study only we may conclude only deliberate conclusions. We experienced, that a well-educated singer with good singing technic is able to use her voice during the third trimester, accepting the decreasing of her voice capacity. But during intensive nursing, in the first six weeks after child-birth is not recommended. Of course the suggestion pertains to intensive voice practise, stage performing, not to cradle-songs, child-songs, volk-songs at home for the new-born baby.
55 TAMÁS J. ALTORJAY – ÁDÁM PERÉNYI – GÁBOR ÁDÁM
REFERENCES
Cassiraga V.L., Castellano A.V., Abasolo J., Abin E.N., Izbizky G.H. [1], Pregnancy and Voice: Changes during the Third Trimester, Journal of Voice 26, no.5, 2012, pp. 584-586. La F.M.B., Sundberg J. [2], Pregnancy and the Singing Voice: Reports from a Case Study. Journal of Voice 26, no.4, 2012, pp. 431-439. Hancock A.B., Gross H.E. [3], Acoustic and Aerodynamic Measures of the Voice during a Pregnancy. Journal of Voice 29, no.1, 2015, pp. 53-58. Saltürk Z., Kumral T.L., Bekiten G., Atar Y., Atac E., Aydogdu J., Yildirim G., Kilic A., Uyar Y. [4], Objective and Subjective Aspects of Voice in Pregnancy, Journal of Voice 30, no.1, 2016, pp. 70-73.
56 STUDIA UBB MUSICA, LXIII, 2, 2018 (p. 57 – 66) (RECOMMENDED CITATION) DOI:10.24193/subbmusica.2018.2.06
MUSIC BELONGS TO ALL OF US! EVEN TO THE DEAF! (?)
MIKLÓS GYÖRGYJAKAB1
SUMMARY. We are all different when it comes to the perception modality we prefer when getting to know the world around us. The deaf cannot hear the music, but they can see and feel it if we provide them with the right visual (sight) and tactile/kinaesthetic (touch/movement) elements. For the first time in Romania, we implemented a unique musical project for the deaf and hearing-impaired people of Transylvania. The events were locally based, but were organized in several cities, so deaf people could literally feel and enjoy the wonderful world of music. Thanks to partnerships with various public and private institutions (among which there were schools, philharmonics, choirs, church communities, NGOs), the events were organized without a financial involvement of the deaf people from Transylvania, who also benefited from the services of several sign language interpreters.
Keywords: music, the deaf, feel, touch, vibration, silence, orchestra, Transylvania
Inaudible sounds – according to the researcher Olivea Dewhurst- Maddock2 Sound is a part of life. People have used sounds to convey information about the world around them and to communicate with each other since ancient times. From the beginning of our existence, even before we are born, we are surrounded by sounds, such as the mother’s heartbeats and the suppressed noise of the outside world. We live in a world of sounds. Sounds that we hear or do not hear, musical or chaotic sounds, odd or familiar sounds, stressful or pleasant sounds, sounds that disturb us, and sounds that heal us.
1 Györgyjakab Miklós studied Music-Theology-Education at the Babeș-Bolyai University Cluj and the Friedrich-Alexander Universität Erlangen-Nürnberg. Currently he is involved in EU- projects regarding social non-governmental organizations and works as a sworn translator and court interpreter in Romania. Contact: [email protected] 2 Dewhurst-Maddock, Olivea, Terapia prin sunete (The book of sound therapy), Ed. Teora, București, 1998, p 9-34.
57 MIKLÓS GYÖRGYJAKAB
Sound is movement. Specifically, sound is a vibratory movement produced when objects are moved from one place to another or when they swing, like a pendulum’s weight. At fundamental level, sound is the movement of atoms and molecules. Object-made sounds originate in the movement of the millions of atoms and molecules from which the objects are made of. Sound is the result of the vibration movement of objects - hence, it is also a form of kinetic energy. Each atom, every molecule, cell, tissue, and (human) body organ continually transmits frequencies corresponding to physical, emotional, mental and spiritual life. To produce sounds, an object needs to vibrate or perform a to-and- fro movement. The number of to-and-fro movement cycles in a second is known as the frequency. The frequency of sound is the main factor determining its application for therapeutic purposes. Low sounds have low frequencies and high ones have high frequencies. Air is made up of mobile gas molecules. Each vibration first produces the compression of the air molecules that are immediately next to the sound source followed by expansion or the increasing of the distances between them. These “waves” of compression and expansion move in the air, starting from the sound source, like the waves of a lake, but in three dimensions. These are the sound waves. Actually, airborne sound waves are made up of air molecules that move from side to side or longitudinally. In conclusion, travelling in the form of a wave, sound has the ability to pass through any environment - air, metal, glass, wood, water and so on. These waves are invisible. In the cosmos nothing is motionless. The state of absolute zero temperature, i.e. -273.15 °C, when all atomic vibrations cease, is considered by scientists to be untouchable. Moreover, everything moves in a moving environment: cycles inside other cycles, wheels inside other wheels.
General description of the project The hearing impaired: this is the collective concept by which society refers to the deaf and hard of hearing people, regardless of the cause, the severity of the hearing impairment, and the state of hearing. The deaf do not have any usable residual hearing, they usually don’t wear a hearing aid, their condition cannot be corrected with hearing aids and most of them use sign language. Sign language is a completely independent communication system that is completely independent from the environment’s sounding language. A sign language unit (sign) carries a complex meaning and does not visualise a letter or a sound.
58 MUSIC BELONGS TO ALL OF US! EVEN TO THE DEAF! (?)
Society places emphasis on the deficiency of deaf people. Their lack of hearing and smooth speech is obvious. Contrary to this point of view, in this project we took notice of their existing abilities, focusing on the vitality, experience and creativity of the deaf people. We are all different when it comes to the perception modality we prefer when getting to know the world around us. The deaf cannot hear the music, but they can see and feel it if we provide them with the right visual (sight) and tactile/kinaesthetic (touch/movement) elements. The project Music belongs to all of us! Even to the deaf!(?) was implemented between April 2017 and May 2018 in four Transylvanian cities. Within this project, we have made the participating deaf aware of the fact that each sound and noise comes from a body, which is called a sound source. In order to make a sound, the sound source has to vibrate at an appropriate speed. When the sound source vibrates, the air molecules in its immediate vicinity start to move and cause a circular wave that spreads in all directions. Musical instruments function according to a similar principle.
E.g. 1
The propagation of sound
In the preparatory phase of the project, we discussed specific means, methods and opportunities with the UK-based “Music and the Deaf” group, who enrich the life of deaf audiences with unforgettable musical experiences. With the help of the Melbourne Symphony Orchestra in Australia, the world of music was introduced primarily to deaf children. The Mahler Chamber Orchestra in Berlin has also got similar experiences. The project coordinator has also provided us with several video recordings, from which we could learn about other methods.
59 MIKLÓS GYÖRGYJAKAB
We have also seen the work of a German expert in Sibiu at an event organized by the Diakoniewerk International association. In the international show Art Without Borders (Kunst kennt keine Grenzen), we got to know the splendid work of the Austrian-born Teresa Leonhard, music and movement therapy professor, performer and researcher. She has staged a movement co-ordination performance with the deaf and hard of hearing people as well as people with disabilities in Sibiu, highlighting the need for providing accessibility to the disabled to cultural performances. The library of the Gheorghe Dima Music Academy in Cluj has given us the opportunity to study the Romanian specialised literature of the field. We have found several volumes in which the author examined the relationship between music and physics (mostly in Romanian, or Romanian translations), but we haven’t found any references to the music world of the deaf.
On-site report:
1. Cluj-Napoca The first location of the project was Cluj-Napoca, where in August 2017 we organized an organ tour for deaf and hard of hearing people. We visited and studied the musical instruments of historic churches, we got to know the organ’s operating principle, discovered the peculiarities of the hundreds of pipes in the instruments, and the interested deaf and hard of hearing people could study the vibrations of the tongue- and labial pipes upon organ-playing. Looking at the photos taken at the event, but also based on the closing discussion, we can clearly state that this was an unforgettable experience for the participants and they have never experienced anything like it before. In cooperation with the Transylvania State Philharmonic Orchestra of Cluj-Napoca, the deaf and hard of hearing students of the Kozmutza Flóra School for the Deaf have been brought closer to the world of music by viewing The Little Mermaid, a musical composition with drama-performance. After the magical one-hour performance, the musicians of the Transylvania State Philharmonic Orchestra presented their instruments to the joy of the participating deaf and hard of hearing children. Even though the majority of the children are members of the sign language choir of their school, they have had no previous opportunity to get to know the instruments of the symphony orchestra, so we can state that this collaboration was an experience of a lifetime for both musicians and participants.
60 MUSIC BELONGS TO ALL OF US! EVEN TO THE DEAF! (?)
2. Tîrgu Mureș Dr. Csíky Csaba, a composer from Tîrgu-Mureş, has helped us with great enthusiasm and expertise, and introduced the local deaf people to the world of the Queen of instruments, while the members of the female chamber choir Musica Humana showed with great interest the anatomical framework of human voice creation. As the choir sang, the deaf people placed their hands on the chests or skulls of the singers, so they perceived the variety of vocals and the virtuosity of the singers with the utmost depth. The brilliant orchestral atmosphere was ensured by the orchestra of the Tîrgu Mureș Arts High School. In the closing discussion after the event each participant said that it would have been a shame to miss this experience and they would be particularly happy to take part in similar events. According to them, music has never touched them so directly, they never thought that the music world had so much to offer. They had already “listened” to concerts through loudspeakers, but have never had symphony orchestra or choral experiences. It was a joy for all of us to see that the positive attitude of the participants and the performers did not only enrich the experiences of the deaf, but has made the musicians more open, more receptive to working with deaf people.
3. Odorheiu Secuiesc Due to the fact that the local interest representation organisation of the deaf community refused cooperation and provided our team with untruthful information, we had to address the deaf target audience in another way. Minister Kórodi Csaba, representing the Transylvanian Reformed Church District, holds Bible classes to the deaf people in the area every two months, with the help of a sign language interpreter. These regular meetings are attended by 20 to 40 deaf people. Taking advantage of this opportunity, we presented the team with our musical project idea and, given their great interest, we organized the organ tour and the orchestral visit after a short while. The Székelyföld Philharmonic Orchestra welcomed our initiative with the utmost openness and support. The participating deaf people were very enthusiastic about participating in the interactive orchestral rehearsal, they had countless questions, the wished to get to know and to try playing as many instruments as possible. We have given them this opportunity, following which we took a look at the organ of the local Roman Catholic church. They were amazed to discover that the church instrument contained more than a thousand pipes. They got to know the structure of the organ, and, at the end of the event, they had many questions to the organizers.
61 MIKLÓS GYÖRGYJAKAB
4. Sfântu Gheorghe During the organization of the events in Sfântu Gheorghe it was found that there are no such interest representation organisations in the city (and in Covasna County) with the help of which we could address the local deaf people and inform them about our project. Based on our previous experiences, we are convinced that notifying the deaf only through the media does not lead to results. We have personally contacted the municipality, the educational institution for children with special needs and the private audiometry centre several times, but they tacitly refused to cooperate. The head of the Plugor Sándor Arts High School showed openness towards the event, but we couldn’t agree on the details with the specialized teachers.
The questionnaire survey During the implementation of the project, we investigated the relationship between the deaf people in Transylvania and music by means of a questionnaire. It was found that a total of 41 persons participated in the project’s past stages, and a total of 6 sign language interpreters aided the communication of the deaf people with the project organizing team. The questionnaire was filled out by 41 deaf / hard of hearing people from Transylvania, aged between 14 and 61 years. 78% of the respondents had a hearing impairment in both ears, 36,6% of the respondents had a hearing aid, 2,4% of them had a cochlear implant, and 61% of them did not have any hearing aid device, to 58,5% of the respondents hearing music is tormenting and this requires a high level of concentration, 87,8% of the respondents does not play any musical instruments, 12,2% of the respondents takes part in choral activities (presumably sign language choirs), and clearly state that music has helped them in their speech development, the families of 65,9% of the respondents have not contributed to the development of their music world, music has no part in the lives of 39% of the respondents.
Sustainability of the project Given the fact that the objective of this project is clearly in line with the objectives of the National Association of the Deaf in Romania and other NGOs, but also with the objectives of the national strategy to forward the social integration of persons with disabilities in Romania, we intend to further
62 MUSIC BELONGS TO ALL OF US! EVEN TO THE DEAF! (?)
develop the project and take it to other cities. We are thus looking for partners and such opportunities. The project’s results so far clearly show that deaf people can enjoy a great musical experience, even though they cannot hear the music.
Conclusions The people involved in the project have repeatedly stated that the music conveyed to them by special means provided them with an extraordinary experience that they have not experienced before. It was proven that the vibrations generated by the instruments can be amplified by various methods, their diversity being perceived by the deaf. We were hoping that at the end of the project we can definitely state that Music belongs to all of us! Even to the deaf!, without the question mark at the end of the project title. Nevertheless, we will not do that. In our opinion, the more accepting and provident society is towards deaf people, the less they feel their own lives being limited. Transylvanian musical and cultural offers lack innovative opportunities targeting the deaf. Local / regional / national NGOs and private initiatives have no development potential, and potential initiatives are faced with major challenges. For the development of the cultural and musical life of Transylvanian deaf people there is a need for further innovative problem solving and a special methodological approach like in this project. The interests of the deaf in Romania are represented by the National Association of the Deaf in Romania (ANSR) through its 18 subunits (county organizations) operating at national level. According to the statute of this NGO, it should promote socio-cultural, educational and leisure activities organized for the deaf to facilitate their social integration and community involvement. In addition, the objectives of the county units include organizing various artistic/cultural events for the benefit of the deaf. Our experiences show that the management and staff of the Association interpret these objectives in a very peculiar way, thus, in our opinion, the organisation requires significant and innovative development. In case of the ANSR, organizational monopoly is decisive, which is not entirely optimal for the beneficiaries. Romanian NGOs, including the ANSR, are heavily involved in identifying income sources for their operation and survival and in administrative activities, but capacity building, communication skills, lobbying and advocacy remain often identified tasks that are hard to fulfil. Nevertheless, it is clear that ANSR is a unit through which a significant part of Romania’s deaf people (predominantly Romanians) can be reached. Interest representation would be essential, not only by the existing 18 county organizations of the ANSR, but, if possible, in all cities with county rights.
63 MIKLÓS GYÖRGYJAKAB
In discussions with the deaf people involved in the project it was found that the cultural possibilities of the deaf in Transylvania are considerably limited. The inclusive Transylvanian society must also conform to the following structure in the relation of the deaf and music: E.g. 2
The inclusive society
The social integration of Transylvanian deaf people depends to a large extent on the attitude of a local “mediator”. If the contact person subjectively considered that this project was less in line with the interests of the deaf he/she represented, or ignored the project altogether because of other activities, than he/she has limited or completely discarded a cultural opportunity for 15 to 20 potential participants. During the implementation of the project it was proven that the attitude of the deaf people’s representative is decisive: if despite the negative attitude of the representative, the team (or some member of it) has participated in the project, they reported having wonderful experiences in each case. The partnership between the project coordinator and the various (local) cultural institutions, schools, NGOs is a form of cooperation that can lead to the successful realization of a cultural event organized for the deaf.
64 MUSIC BELONGS TO ALL OF US! EVEN TO THE DEAF! (?)
In the absence of a partnership, addressing the local target community is almost impossible; the deaf are untrusting and uninterested when it comes to an unknown project / project coordinator; they do not respond to calls in the media (printed, online, transmitted on TV accompanied by sign language). Those who did come to our events, with the help of a mediator, took part in the event gladly and with great curiosity, and were keen on trying out the instruments. Communication between local authorities (incl. school director, orchestra manager, group leader) and the project coordination team was usually based on the principles of confrontation and ignoring each other. The need to develop a partnership was obvious, since the isolated activity of the two key sectors demonstrates a low level of trust and consequently has a negative impact on the consolidation of society. The problem of communication between the project coordination team and the deaf groups’ leaders negatively affected the results of the initiated project. In this case, information about our activities did not reach the deaf community. As a result, the effective civil initiatives were still perceived as a „gray spot”. The possibility of unlimited use of sign language helps the deaf and hard of hearing people to be equal members of society with equal rights. In all cases, effective communication with the deaf should be aided by qualified sign language interpreters.
Translated from Hungarian by Magyari Renáta
REFERENCES
Corneliu, Cezar, Introducere în sonologie – acțiunea undelor sonore asupra nivelelor fizico-chimic, biologic și psihologic (Introduction to Sonology - Action of Sound Waves on Physico-Chemical, Biological and Psychological Levels), Ed. Muzicală, Bucharest, 1984. Castella, Fredo – Mortari, Virgilio, Tehnica orchestrei contemporane (The Technique of Contemporary Orchestra), Ed. Muzicală, Bucharest, 1965. Dewhurst-Maddock, Olivea, Terapia prin sunete (The book of sound therapy), Ed. Teora, Bucharest, 1998. Kiss, Jenőné (Kenesei, Éva), Alternatív lehetőségek a zenepedagógiában (Alternatives in Music Pedagogy), Tárogató kiadó, Budapest, 1994. Koechlin de Bizemont, Dorothée, Edgar Cayce. Muzicoterapia sau cum să ne vindecăm cu ajutorul muzicii (Music Therapy or How to Heal Ourselves With Music). Ed. Pro, Bucharest, 2005.
65 MIKLÓS GYÖRGYJAKAB
Orff, Gertrud, Orff zeneterápiájának alapjai – defincíciók és példák (Basics of Orff's Music Therapy - Definitions and Examples), dr. Könczei György kiadása, Eötwös Loránd Tudományegyetem, 1994 Sacks, Oliver, Muzicofilia. Povestiri despre muzică și creier (Musicophilia. Tales of Music and the Brain), Ed. Humanitas, Bucharest, 2009. Szabó, Csaba, Hogyan tanítsuk korunk zenéjét – svéd, angol és kanadai szerzők munkáiról (How to Teach Contemporary Music – on Works of Swedish, English and Canadian Authors), Kriterion könyvkiadó, Bucharest, 1977. Urmă, Dem, Acustică și muzică (Acoustics and Music), Ed. Științifică și Enciclopedică, Bucharest, 1982.
Notice: “This article (speciality study) is part of the project Music belongs to all! Even to the deaf? (Project coordinator: Györgyjakab Miklós), project financed by the Communitas Foundation of Romania, with contract no. 189/18.05.2017.”
Further information about the project: - summary of the questionnaires: https://drive.google.com/file/d/1QUYC9dVpfcPBH9jXto0Lrjuq7xEmrgCN/view, - photos: https://www.facebook.com/pg/Music4Deaf- 207139213128423/photos/?ref=page_internal, - video footage: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCDcFNtvPrYRnGx-kubivkFg/videos, https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Hl9irAumdGA&feature=youtu.be&t=955 https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VXC1ZXZSKwk&feature=youtu.be&t=1693, - Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/Music4Deaf-207139213128423/.
66 STUDIA UBB MUSICA, LXIII, 2, 2018 (p. 67 – 84) (RECOMMENDED CITATION) DOI:10.24193/subbmusica.2018.2.07
CHAMBER MUSIC EXPLORATIONS FOR MEDITATION
JANOS ZSOLT IMRE1
SUMMARY. Music evokes a wide range of feelings, from excitement to relaxation, enjoyment to sadness, fear to relief, and even mixtures of these. The following paper presents exploratory compositions and related research prepared for fulfilment to create chamber music for meditation. The paper is divided in three parts. The first part is focusing on background research about meditation. It includes an overview of meditation including a short history, its origins, the effects of music and its benefits in meditation. The second part briefly discusses the music elements and its influences. The third part of the paper describes and analyses the musical compositions. Each piece is deliberated in detail, to provide an understanding of the creative process and devices used in preparing, framing and composing the pieces. The pieces are written for string quartet and percussion instruments. The result of this work is the creation of new pieces that fulfill the purpose and a practical illustration of compositional processes.
Keywords: music, music explorations, effects of music, music for meditation, elements of music.
Part I: History and Overview
The Meaning and Benefits of Meditation The word meditation is used to define practices that self-regulate the mind and body. It is one of the oldest and most widely practiced mind– body therapies.2 The term meditation carries different meanings in different contexts. The Cambridge Dictionary defines meditation as the act of giving your attention to only one thing, either as a religious activity or as a way of becoming calm and relaxed.3 On the other hand, Wilson and Cummings
1 Master of Art, York University, Graduate Program in Music, 4700 Keele Street, Toronto, Ontario, Canada, M3J 1P3. E-mail: [email protected] 2 Baime, Michael J. Meditation and Mindfulness, in Essentials of Complementary and Alternative Medicine, New York, 1999, 522. 3 The Cambridge Dictionary, “meditation”, accessed December 15, 2016, http://www.dictionary.cambridge.org/dictionary/english/meditation.
67 JÁNOS ZSOLT IMRE define meditation as a state of complete mindfulness, living in the ‘here and now’.4 Meditation is a practice of concentrated focus upon a sound, music, object, visualization, the breath, body part, movement, or attention itself in order to increase awareness of the present moment, reduce stress, promote relaxation, and enhance personal and spiritual growth.5 Meditation techniques are classified by the way in which they focus attention. These two main categories are ‘focused attention’ and ‘open monitoring’.6 With ‘focused attention’, the mind is directed at a single object during the meditation session. This object could be the breath, a mantra, part of the body, an external object, sound etc. Examples of meditation styles based on focused attention are: Chakra Meditation, Guided Meditation, Zen Meditation, Transcendental Meditations.7 8 With ‘open monitoring’, instead of directing the attention at any one object, the meditator cultivates an objectless awareness, monitoring the content of ongoing experience, without judgment or attachment. All perceptions, internal (thoughts, feelings, memory, etc.) or external (sound, image, etc.), are acknowledged and seen for what they are. Examples of open monitoring meditation styles are: Mindfulness Meditation, Vipassana Meditation, Taoist Meditation.9 10 Although it is not essential to play music while meditating, several meditation styles are practiced to the accompaniment of music. Certain types of music can affect human emotions, mood, and mental perspective, and can create an ideal atmosphere for the individual to focus on the act of meditation. Examples of meditation styles that use music while meditating are: Mindfulness Meditation, Guided Meditation, Sound Meditation, Zen Meditation.11 Meditation is used to clear the mind and to achieve a state of thoughtless awareness without decreasing effectiveness and alertness. All meditation methods serve one goal to slow down and stop the continuous activity of our minds. Musical elements such as the pulse, rhythm, melody and instrumentation can aid in achieving this state.
4 Wilson, V. E., and M. S. Cummings, Learned Self-Regulation. Toronto, York St. A. & M., 2015. 5 Consumers, Dorland's Medical Dictionary for Health. The Free Dictionary, accessed Nov. 7, 2016, http://medical-dictionary.thefreedictionary.com/meditation. 6 Raffone, A. and N. Srinivasan, The exploration of meditation in the neuroscience of attention and consciousness. Cognitive Processing 11, Published online, 2010, 1-7. 7 Raffone, A. and N. Srinivasan, The exploration of meditation in the neuroscience of attention and consciousness, Cognitive Processing 11, Published online, 2010, 1-7. 8 Appendix A. 9 Ibid. 10 Cahn, R. B. and J. Polich, Meditation states and traits: EEG, ERP, and neuroimaging studies, Psychological Bulletin 132, 2006, 180-211. 11 Appendix A.
68 CHAMBER MUSIC EXPLORATIONS FOR MEDITATION
Meditation can also incorporate a mantra. Mantras are an essential part of some meditation practices. The term mantra can be defined as a word, group of words, a syllable or a sound that is often repeated to anchor the mind in the present moment, to sustain it from wandering off, and to aid concentration during the meditation. A mantra may or may not have descriptive structure or literal meaning. The most basic and important mantra is Om, which in Hinduism is known as the source of all mantras, the sound of the universe.12 John Coltrane recorded an album based on the Om mantra.13 In reciting a mantra, such as Om, the meditator tends to diminish the mental chatter, decreasing the continuous activity of the mind. The goal of the mantra is to help the mind to become more unified, less scattered, more attentive and present. Mantras can be incorporated in music, as well. Using a repeated series of notes can provide a mantra effect. These sound or sonic mantras could help the meditator concentrate during the meditation practice. In music, a repeated melodic or rhythmic figure called an ostinato can be reflected as a mantra. Examples of music that uses mantras or music patterns as a mantra include: Steven Halpern – Om Zone VII,14 John Coltrane – A Love Supreme,15 Arvo Pärt – Spiegel im Spiegel,16 Maurice Ravel – Bolero.17 The benefits of meditation could be physical, mental, emotional or spiritual. Meditation can benefit individuals with or without severe medical illness or stress. Nonetheless, meditation helps to maintain a healthier body, improves the immune system and energy level, improves breathing and heart rates, reduces blood pressure, and can diminish heart and brain problems.18 Studies show that individuals who meditate have demonstrated less depression, anxiety, and stress. Meditation can also help to calm the mind, to improve concentration, lead to a deeper level of physical relaxation, increase creativity, increase self-actualization, and enhanced personal and spiritual growth. Listening to music while meditating can help balance the emotions, and can improve concentration. Music can produce pleasant feelings and those feelings supplied by music while meditating can help to reach a deeper state of meditation.
12 Khan, H. I., The Mysticism of sound and music, Boston, Shambhala, 1996. 13 John Coltrane, Om. Impulse! 39118. 1968. CD. 14 Steven Halpern, In the Om Zone. Halpern Inner Peace. 8030. 2007. CD. 15 John Coltrane, A Love Supreme. Impulse! B001097002. 1965. CD. 16 Arvo Pärt, Arvo Pärt Portrait. Angèle Dubeau & La Pietà. Analekta. 28731. 2010 17 Maurice Ravel, Ravel: Bolero. Arthur Fiedler & The Boston Pops Orchestra. Sony M. 00004TCP7. 2000. CD. 18 Khobragade, Y., Khobragade, S., and Abbas, A. bin L. Michelle. “Hypertension and meditation.” Int. Journal of Community Medicine and Public Health 3, 2016, 1685-1695.
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A Brief History of Meditation Meditation has been present in human life for thousands of years. It is often found in a religious context. The earliest form of meditation dates back anywhere between 5000 – 3500 BCE. Researchers suggest that it was common practice for older civilisations to use repetitive, rhythmic chants (nowadays commonly called mantras) in attempts to pacify the gods.19 The earliest written records on meditation can be found in the Hindu tradition. These records contain scriptures which describe the meditative traditions of ancient India.20 Other forms of meditation developed between the sixth to fifth centuries BCE, through Taoism in China, and Jainism and Buddhism in India and Nepal.21 All these religions practiced meditation in an attempt to achieve enlightenment and spiritual development. When the Common Era (current era, A. D.) started, the practice of meditation would spread quickly due to its relationship with multiple religions. Meditation began to spread to other countries in East Asia mostly through Buddhism. After transmitted to China, Buddhism spread to Vietnam, Korea, and Japan, where it become known as Japanese Zen.22 While Buddhism reached other countries, each region enhanced their own interpretation, and established their own way of practicing it. Various forms of meditation have been present for centuries in all major religions. There are indications in the Tanakh (the Hebrew Bible), that Judaism contained a central meditative tradition Hitbodedut,23 while later, in Islam, the practice of Sufism included meditative techniques, and its followers practiced controlled breathing and the repetition of holy words.24 In Christianity, many practices are considered forms of meditation. Forms of introspective thinking can be found in counting rosary beads and the Adoration, which focuses on the Eucharist. Also, Christian monks who spent most of their lives in monastery cells contemplating God, can be considered to practice a form of meditation.25
19 Everly, G. S. Jr. and J. M. Lating, A clinical guide to the treatment of human stress response, New York. Springer, 2013. 20 Ibid. 21 Ibid. 22 Harvey, P., An Introduction to Buddhism. Teachings, history and Practices, Cambridge, Univ. Press, 1995. 23 Kaplan, A., Jewish Meditation, New York, Schocken Books, 1985. 24 Bowker, J., The Concise Oxford Dictionary of World Religions, Oxford:,Oxford University Press, 2000. 25 Benson, H., The Relaxation Response, New York, Morrow, 1975.
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During the 18th century, meditation (and Buddhism) became a subject of discussion for intellectuals in Europe such as the German philosopher Schopenhauer and the French writer, philosopher Voltaire.26 27 Meditation found its way into Britain through translations of scriptures from various Buddhist schools in different parts of east Asia.28 At the beginning of the 20th century Asian Buddhist masters and educators of the Zen, Tibetan and Theravada traditions and principles emigrated to the United States and Canada in order to promulgate their beliefs and their meditative practices.29 An enormous interest in meditation began after the Second World War. Many soldiers who served in the Pacific during the war had intimate contact with local cultures. When they returned home they brought meditation with them and the practice of meditation increased. The number of meditation centres started to grow exponentially during the 1970s. Today, dozens of websites offer meditation practice and meditation techniques for millions of practitioners around the world. However, after decades of scientific study and research, the exact mechanism at work in meditation remains unclear.30 In the 1960s and 1970s numerous academics, scholars and scientific researchers started to investigate the effects of meditation and its benefits. Spiritual and secular forms of meditation have been the subject of scientific analysis, resulting in thousands of published books and scientific articles on the subject of meditation.31
The Effects of Music in Meditation The influential effect of certain music lies in its capacity to alter moods, to evoke feelings, and to create distraction. It is connected to our emotions, and has the capacity to evoke emotional arousal. Music influences the human body, which can be measured. The mood responses created by music can be detected. Moreover, the elements of music, rhythm, harmony, melody, and timbre have a substantial effect on humans. The Indian classical musician and master of Sufism, Hazrat Inayat Khan, suggests that music can help to achieve the goal of meditation.
26 Abelson, P., Schopenhauer and Buddhism, Honolulu, University of Hawaii Press, 1993. 27 Beales, D., Enlightenment and Reform in Eighteenth-Century Europe, London: I. B. Tauris & Co. Ltd, 2005. 28 Ruth, D. St., BBC UK, Religions. accessed November 15, 2016 http://www.bbc.co.uk/religion/religions/buddhism/history/britishbuddhism_1.shtml 29 Fields, R., How the swans came to the lak,. New York, Shambhala, 1981. 30 Everly, G. S. Jr. and J. M. Lating, A clinical guide to the treatment of human stress response, New York, Springer, 2013. 31 Murphy, M. and S. Donovan, The Physical and Psychological Effects of Meditatio, Petaluma: Inst. Of Noetic Sciences, 1997.
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“There is nothing in this world that can help one spiritually more than music. Meditation prepares, but music is the highest for touching perfection”.32
Music has been part of meditation practices for thousands of years. Its curative power date back to ancient times and it was known as an influential instrument for health, healing, and wellness.
“In ancient times, schools have taken music as a source of their meditation. Those who meditated with the help of music, they drive much more benefit from it than those who meditate without the help of music”.33
Ancient cultures acknowledged that the power of sound, such as chanting, drumming and other ways of producing sound, had a deep effect on the human mind.34 In their published study about the effect of music on human behaviour, psychologists Irving A. Taylor and Frances Paperte concluded that:
“Music, because of its abstract nature, detours around the ego and intellectual controls and, contacting the lower centre directly, stirs up latent conflicts and emotions which may be expressed and activated through music; if the structural dynamics of the music impinging on the sensorium is similar to the prevalent structure the two will unite and thus fusion will allow music to affect emotions directly”.35
The authors point out that a human’s emotional state may be altered through music. The mood quality of music can match the mood or the emotion of the person. The expression of an emotion or mood, may be achieved by selecting the music that corresponds to that emotion or mood. As well, altering a mood or emotion, is accomplished by selecting music that effectively juxtaposes with the mood being altered. Music is one of the most universal sensory stimuli for human beings. The American philosopher Suzanne Langer, suggests that in some cultures, music can express more specific feelings that language fails to communicate.
32 Khan, H. I., The Mysticism of sound and music, Boston, Shambhala, 1996, 99. 33 Ibid. 34 Balick, M. J. and R. Lee. The power of sound: Ethnomedical tradition and modern science, Alternative Therapies 9, 2003, 63-72. 35 Taylor I. A. and F. Paperte. Current Theory and Research in the Effects of Music on Behavior, Journal of Aesthetics 17, 1958, 251-258.
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“The forms of human feeling are much more congruent with musical forms than with the forms of language, music can reveal the nature of feelings with a detail and truth that language cannot approach”.36
In ‘Emotions expressed and aroused by music’,37 philosopher and ethnomusicologist Stephen Davies notes that in music we acknowledge motion, pattern and dynamic structures that can influence or stimulate us emotionally.
“We hear in music a terrain shaped by ongoing interactions between its parts, which vary in their pitch, complexity, teleological impetus, energy, texture, inertia, tension, and so on”.38
Psychoacoustics is the branch of psychology concerned with the perception of sound, and its physiological effects.39 According to Leeds, in this field the terms music, sound, frequency, and vibration are interchangeable, because they are different approximations of the same core.40 Music creates psychological effects on humans, by appealing to the limbic system, which is the centre of sensations, emotions and feelings in the brain.41 This includes how we listen, our psychological responses, and the physiological impact of music and sound on the human nervous system. However, music, sound, and vibration alters the frequency of our brainwaves, and has a direct effect on the activity of our mind and body.42 As music attracts our attention, it can support meditation practice, can help to clear our minds, and can prevent the mind from wandering. Furthermore, music has been found to generate a relaxed mood and stress reduction, making it a plausible way to accommodate coping with pain and anxiety.43 The vibrations in music have the ability to modify muscle tension, heart rate variability, blood pressure, and the respiratory rate. Music may act directly on the autonomic nervous system when the stress response is interrupted and anxiety levels are reduced.44
36 Langer, S. K., Philosophy in a new Key, New York, New American Library, 1951, 235. 37 Davies, S., Emotions expressed and aroused by music, in Handbook of Music and Emotion, ed. Patrik N. Juslin, and John A. Slobod, Oxford, University Press, 2011. 38 Ibid, 55. 39 Stevenson, A. and M. Waite, Oxford English Dictionary, New York, Oxford University Press, 2011. 40 Leeds, J., The Power of Sound, Rochester: Healing Arts Press, 2010. 41 Murrock, C. J., Music and Mood, in Psychology of moods, ed. Anita V. Clark, New York, Nava Science Publishers, 2005, 141-153. 42 Ibid. 43 Ibid. 44 Ibid.
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Music is an effective device for altering mood, helping relaxation, promoting calmness or restoring balance to the autonomic nervous system. The psychophysical elements of music play a substantial role in human physiological and psychological functions, thus creating alterations in mood. Nevertheless, the most fundamental elements of music captures ones focus by shifting attention away from something that is unpleasant or stressful to a more positive stimulus. In his book ‘Flow’ psychologist Mihaly Csikszentmihalyi concluded that keeping order in the mind from within is difficult.45 Outer stimulation is essential to keep attention directed. The distinct structure of music requires commitment to experience present moment awareness. This unique characteristic makes music a potent distractor and a cure to focus the wandering mind. The most common and effective method of meditating starts with focusing on the breath. Listening to music while meditating, and focusing on the sound, or on the elements of music, can result in thoughts flowing away without any conscious effort. The tone of the instruments can act as a bridge from the everyday world to a calming, pleasing, and relaxed state. The elements of music are beneficial as they can help balance the emotions, reduce the level of stress hormones, and release tension. According to Khan, while meditating, music can help to tune the mind and soul and help to accomplish a spiritual insight and altered consciousness.46 In conclusion, music can make us to feel uplifted and energized. It can elevate or depress, and it can reduce or educe stress. It stimulates our body to lower blood pressure, decrease heart rate, to diminish stress hormones, reduce muscular tensions, and to help us achieve a state of meditation and relaxation.
Part II: Musical Elements
The Elements of Music and its Influences In the literature of music psychology, the term psychophysical has been used to refer to the physical properties of music, (tempo, range, melody, rhythm, dynamics, harmony). Musicologist Mark Reybrouck claims that the term psychophysical, within the field of music, is the connection between acoustic level of musical stimuli and the level of meaning and their
45 Csikszentmihalyi, M., Flow: The Psychology of Optimal Experience, New York, Harper and Row, 1990. 46 Khan, H. I., The Mysticism of sound and music, Boston, Shambhala, 1996.
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perceptual processing.47 The psychophysical elements of music have been found to have a considerable influence on listeners regarding the emotional content of music: tempo, rhythm, melody, harmony, articulation, dynamics, consonance, dissonance, range and timbre.48 The elements of music, with its set of rules for combining sounds in an infinite number of ways, plays a significant role in the psychological and physiological functions between the brain and body.49 Nonetheless, the psychophysical elements of music have notable effects on our minds and bodies during the meditation process as well.
“The Yogis regulated the rhythm of the circulation, of the heart and of every action of the breath, with the help of vibration, of music, of both tone and rhythm”.50
The power of music can change moods both consciously and subconsciously, and has a substantial effect on humans.
“Music creates order out of chaos; for rhythm imposes unanimity upon the divergent, melody imposes continuity upon the disjointed, and harmony imposes compatibility upon the incongruous”.51
Music, in general, is based on organized and repetitive patterns that create order. The order that music brings to our experience is rhythmic, melodic and harmonic. Music tends to sculpt us, in our thoughts and our behaviour patterns, into conformity with its own inherent patterns of rhythm, melody, morality and mood. Music is a compound blend of rhythm, harmony, melody and timbre that notably affects the human body in two ways: directly, as the effect of sound upon the cells and organs, and indirectly, by affecting the emotions, which then influences various bodily processes. 52
47 Reybrouck, M., The Musical Code between Nature and Nurture, Ferrara, Springer Science. 2008.. 48 Gabrielsson, A. and Patrik N. Juslin, Emotional expression in music performance: Between the performer's intention and the listener's experience, Psychology of Music 24, 1996, 68-91. 49 Murrock, C. J., Music and Mood in Phychology of moods, ed Anita V. Clark, New York, Nova Science Publisher, 2005, 141-153. 50 Khan, H. I., The Mysticism of sound and music, Boston, Shambhala, 1996, 50. 51 Menuhin, Y., Theme and Variations, New York: Stein and Day, 1972. 52 Tame, D., The Secret Power of Musi, Rochester, Vermont, Destiny Books, 1984.
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Rhythm “Motion is the significance of life, and the law of motion is rhythm”.53
Music involves the organization of sounds within a rhythmic framework. While listening to a melody, most often, consciously we pay attention to the notes of the melody, and subconsciously we absorb the rhythm of the melody.54 Most of the time, humans, consciously, do not pay attention to their body rhythms, but subconsciously these rhythms drive them in their every moment.
“The words thoughtful and thoughtless signify a rhythmic or unrhythmic state of mind, and balance, which is the only upholding power of life, is kept by rhythm”.55
Rhythm is the form of motion and is the most fundamental, crucial, structural, and organizational element of music. Rhythm is the pulse or the life force of music. Pulse, duration and tempo are features of rhythm that move music.56 The finest place to learn the artistry of rhythm is the human body. The human body cannot function without rhythm. The whole construction of the human body is based on rhythm and pulsation. Our body’s rhythm is so natural that it is barely noticeable. The rhythm keeps our body’s mechanism together, whether the beat of the heart, of the pulse, of the head and the circulation of blood is all based upon rhythm. Rhythm affects the human mind as well. Inhaling and exhaling is a natural, balanced pattern, a breathing beat. Breathing keeps the mind and body connected, and instrumentally keeps rhythm in every moment of our lives.57 As we know, music can change moods both consciously and subconsciously. The most subconscious element of music is the rhythm, and is the basic dynamic, and driving factor that stimulates action.58
53 Khan, H. I., The Mysticism of sound and music, Boston: Shambhala, 1996, 151. 54 Gaston, E. T., Dynamic music factors in mood change, Music Educators Journal 37, 1951, 42-44. 55 Khan, H. I., The Mysticism of sound and music, Boston, Shambhala, 1996, 155. 56 Stevens, C., Music medicine: the science and spirit of healing yourself with sound, Boulder, Sounds True, 2012. 57 Ibid. 58 Gaston, E. T., Dynamic music factors in mood change, Music Educators Journal 37, 1951, 42-44.
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In her work, ‘Music and Mood’, Carolyn Murrock concludes that consistent rhythm gives a secure feeling while inconsistent rhythm commands attention and creates apprehension.59 Entrainment accounts for changes in brain waves, heart rhythms, respirations, emotional tones, timing, pacing, and other organic rhythms of the human body according to musical rhythm.60 Within the study of chronobiology, entrainment occurs when rhythmic physiological or behavioural events match their period to that of an environmental oscillation. As the natural rhythm of the human body is inherent (natural), the human brain can be entrained to match the rhythm of the music. A constant entrainment can bring an individual from one emotional state into another emotional state, through a gradual change in the rhythm of the music.61 The human heart typically beats at approximately 65-80 beats per minute. When individuals are exposed to music at a higher tempo than their own intrinsic heartbeats, that music will have a stimulating, arousing effect to intensify the general mood. Conversely, when individuals are exposed to music at a slower tempo, one that is less than an individual’s intrinsic heartbeat, it will have a relieving or calming effect.62 Entrainment involves synchronizing the rhythm, or pulse, of the music resulting in both psychological and physiological effects on the human body.63
Melody “Melody speaks the language of the heart”.64
Melody can be described as a succession of musical notes that form a distinctive sequence of sound. Melody is the conscious (concrete) element of music as it produces a distinct pattern, generally, allowing the listener to sing or hum along.65.
59 Murrock, C. J., Music and Mood in Phychology of moods, ed Anita V. Clark, New York, Nova Science Publisher, 2005, 141-153. 60 Ibid. 61 Murrock, C. J., Music and Mood, in Phychology of moods, ed Anita V. Clark, New York, Nova Science Publisher, 2005, 141-153. 62 Weber, S., Music: A means of comfort, in Music Therapy in Palliatice Care: New Voices, ed. David Aldridge, London, Jessica Kingsley Publishers, 1999, 95-104. 63 Murrock, C. J., Music and Mood in Phychology of moods, ed Anita V. Clark, New York: Nova Science Publisher, 2005, 141-153. 64 Stevens, C., Music medicine: the science and spirit of healing yourself with sound, Boulder,Sounds True, 2012, 53. 65 Murrock, C. J., Music and Mood, in Phychology of moods, ed Anita V. Clark, New York, Nova Science Publisher, 2005, 141-153.
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Melody has the ability to express a mood, a thought, an idea, or an emotion, and is a nonverbal communication that can stimulate a wide range of emotional responses from consonance (happy, calm, euphoric, relaxing, soothing) to dissonance (sad, fearful, anxious, panicky, angry, alarmed, edgy). The direction of a melody can also have an influential effect on human emotions and feelings. Ascending melody passages are commonly felt to increase concern and tension, while a descending melody passages often produces a calming effect.66 Researchers have found that the tension of the larynx is influenced by melodies featuring a descending series of notes. Since the larynx is affected by the ongoing stream of one’s emotions and thought processes, its reactions to music are possibly indicative of an effect of music upon the psyche.67
“The effects of tones upon the larynx indicates, melodies cause a constant saga of tensions and relaxations to occur within many parts of the body”.68
Melody is also a combination of pitches. Pitch is the number of cycles the sound vibrates per second; the degree of highness or lowness of a tone. The vibration rate per unit of time can alter moods. Every emotion develops from the intensity of vibrations. As melodies are based on vibration, they activate us emotionally. Rapid vibration is viewed as stimulating and slow vibrations are considered as relaxing.
Harmony “Harmony is the expression of the soul’s desire for balance and connection, helps us to discover the power of togetherness”.69
Harmony, refers to the way musical notes and pitches are blended together to form an amalgamation of sound. Harmony supports the melody and gives the music texture and/or mood. The natural force of harmony is balance.70 Harmony helps us to learn the power of togetherness. We notice harmony within ourselves in the balance of body, mind and spirit.
66 Lefevre, M., Playing with sound: the therapeutic use of music in direct work with children, Child and Family Social Work 9, 2004, 333-345. 67 Tame, D., The Secret Power of Music, Rochester, Vermont, Destiny Books, 1984. 68 Ibid,137 69 Stevens, C., Music medicine: the science and spirit of healing yourself with sound, Boulder,Sounds True, 2012, 81. 70 Khan, H. I.,The Mysticism of sound and music, Boston, Shambhala, 1996.
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Harmony is grounded upon consonance and dissonance. In music, dissonance wants to be resolved. It is resolved, tension is released. All music can be measured as an interplay of tension and release. The interplay of consonance and dissonance creates balance.71 David Tame claims that researchers have revealed that consonant and dissonant chords, different intervals, and other elements of music all exercise a reflective effect upon human pulse and respiration.
“Upon their rate and upon whether their rhythm is constant, or interrupted and jumpy. Blood pressure is lowered by sustained chords and raised by crisp, repeated ones”.72
Tension and relief may be manipulated through the organization of music stimuli. The interplay of tension and release can stimulate an individual’s awareness. Consonant and dissonant interchanges in music can help reinforce a meditator’s attention and concentration. This mixture of consonant and dissonant harmonies also helps music to reflect emotional occurrences and contribute to its effect on mood.73
Timbre Timbre defines the perceived sound quality of a musical note, or tone. This term is applied mainly to the sound of musical instruments. The distinctiveness of a musical instrument is conveyed by its timbre. The tone of each instrument has its own timbre. Researchers have shown that instrumental timbre contributes to emotional judgments in music.74 Aspects of timbre, such as attack and frequency spectrum, contribute to the perception of particular emotions in music.75 Nevertheless, the colour of a musical instrument may affect and influence the human mind and body.
71 Stevens, C., Music medicine: the science and spirit of healing yourself with sound, Boulder,Sounds True, 2012. 72 Tame, D., The Secret Power of Music, Rochester, Vermont, Destiny Books, 1984, 137 73 Lefevre, M., Playing with sound: the therapeutic use of music in direct work with children, Child and Family Social Work 9, 2004, 333-345. 74 Balkwill, L. L. and William F. Thompson, A cross-cultural investigation of the perception of emotion in music: Psychophysical and cultural cues, Music Perception: An Interdisciplinary Journal 17, 1999, 43-64. 75 Gabrielsson, A., and P. N. Juslin, Emotional expression in music performance: Between the performer’s intention and the listener’s experience, Psychology of Music, 1996, 68-91.
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One of the oldest instruments in the East used for meditation is the Vina.76 The first Vina, was a bamboo stick with attached gourds. They were crafted in such a way that the sound waves deeply penetrated the mind and body. The Vina can make a dull, monotonous sound called a drone that is capable of creating a meditative atmosphere. The Rishis, (Hindi saint) used it for their yogic practices because they thought the sound could help their concentration.77 Khan claims that string, wind and percussion instruments each have a distinct and particular effect on the human body. Smith and Noon, in their study, investigated the relationship between different types of contemporary music and mood states. They concluded that music that consists predominantly of brass, percussion, electronic sounds, and bass is frequently associated with feelings of unrest, amplified energy, and increased strength.78 Whereas, music that consists mostly of harps, string instruments, bells, and wind chimes affects the heart and soul, and is frequently associated with feelings of relaxation, calmness, and peacefulness.79 A musical piece can be analyzed by considering its elements. These elements can be controlled and manipulated while creating the piece, and help to depict the final result. It is exciting to realize that music can be crafted in such a way that it has a direct effect on the activity of our bodies. Music can help create an ideal atmosphere for meditation and can support the goals of meditation. There are many types of meditation techniques used around the world and as a result, various types of music are also used. Generally, music that pleases the mind is simple and clear melodically, rhythmically and harmonically. Music that contains warm flowing melodies and slow moving harmonies can have a calming and relaxing influence. Music that contains regular rhythms that correspond to a normal, healthy heartbeat can help sooth the mind.
To be continued
76 Khan, H. I., The Mysticism of sound and music, Boston, Shambhala, 1996. 77 Ibid. 78 Smith, J. L., and Joe Noon. Objective measurement of mood change induced by contemporary music, Journal of Psyhiatric and Mental Health Nursing 5, 1998, 403-408. 79 Murrock, C. J., Music and Mood, in Psychology of moods, ed Anita. V. Clark, New York, Nova Science Publishers, 2005, 141-153.
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REFERENCES
Abelson, Peter, Schopenhauer and Buddhism, University of Hawaii Press, Honolulu, 1993. Adler, Samuel, The Study of Orchestration, W. W. Norton, New York, 2002. Batchelor, Stephen, The Awakening of the West, Parallax Press, Berkeley, California, 1994. Beales, D., Enlightenment and Reform in Eighteenth-Century Europe, Tauris, London, 2005. Benson, Herbert, The Relaxation Response, New York: Morrow, 1975. Bowker, John, The Concise Oxford Dictionary of World Religions, Oxford Univ. Press, Oxford, 2000. Bronkhorst, Johannes, The Two Traditions of Meditation in Ancient India, Motilal Banarsidass, Second. Delhi, 1993. Copland, Aaron, What to listen for in music, Mentor, New York, 1988. Csikszentmihályi, Mihály, Flow: The Psychology of Optimal Experience, Harper and Row, New York, 1990. Davies, Stephen, “Emotions expressed and aroused by music” in Handbook of Music and Emotion, edited by Patrik N. Juslin and John A. Sloboda. Oxford University Press, Oxford, 2011. Everest, F. Alton, Master handbook of acoustics, McGraw-Hill Education, New York, 2015. Everly, George S. Jr., and Jeffrey M. Lating, A clinical guide to the treatment of human stress response, Springer, New York, 2013. Fields, Rick, How the swans came to the lake: a narrative history of Buddhism in America, Shambhala, New York, 1981. Gawler, I., and Bedson, P. Meditation: an in-depth guide. Tarcher/Penguin, New York, 2011. Harvey, P., An Introduction to Buddhism. Teachings, history and Practices, University Press, Cambridge, 1995. Hindemith, Paul, The craft of musical composition, Associated Music Publ., New York, 1941. Kaplan, Aryeh, Jewish Meditation, Schocken Books, New York, 1985. Khan, Hazrat Inayat, The Mysticism of sound and music, Shambhala, Boston, 1996. Langer, Susanne K., Philosophy in a new Key: a study in the symbolism of reason, rite, and art, New American Library, New York, 1951. Leeds, Joshua, The Power of Sound. How to Be Healthy and Productive Using Music and Sound, Healing Arts Press, Rochester, 2010. Lendvai, Ernő, Béla Bartók: An analysis of his music, Kahn & Averill, London, 1971. Menuhin, Yehudi, Theme and Variations, Stein and Day, New York, 1972.
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Messiaen, Oliver, The Technique of my Musical Language, Alphonse Leduc, Paris, 1956. Meyer, Leonard B., Emotion and meaning in music, University of Chicago Press, Chicago, 1956. Murrock, Carolyn J., “Music and Mood” In: Psychology of moods, ed. Anita V. Clark, Nova Science Publishers, New York, 2005, 141-153. Murphy, M., and S. Donovan, The Physical and Psychological Effects of Meditation, Inst. of Noetic Sciences, Petaluma, 1997. Reybrouck, Mark, “The Musical Code between Nature and Nuture”, In: Barbieri, Marcello, The Codes of Life: The Rules of Macroevolution, Springer Science, Ferrara, 2008. Samuel, Geoffrey, The Origins of Yoga and Tantra: Indic Religions to the Thirteenth Century, Cambridge University Press, Cambridge, 2008. Schoenberg, Arnold, Fundamentals of Musical Composition, Faber and Faber Ltd. London, 1967. Schoenberg, Arnold, Structural Functions of Harmony, Norton & Company, New York, 1954. Schoenberg, Arnold, Style and Idea, Philosophical Library, New York, 1950. Smith, Jonathan C., Relaxation, meditation, and mindfulnes: a practical guide, Springer Pub. Co., New York, 2005. Steblin, Rita, A history of key characteristics in the eighteenth and early nineteenth centuries, UMI Research Press, Ann Arbor, Mich., 1983. Stevens, Christine, Music medicine: the science and spirit of healing yourself with sound, Sounds True, Boulder, Colo., 2012. Stevenson, A., and M. Waite, Oxford English Dictionary, Oxford Univ. Press, New York, 2011. Tame, David, The Secret Power of Music, Destiny Books, Rochester, Vermont, 1984. Weber, Susan, “Music: A means of comfort” In: Music Therapy in Palliatice Care: New Voices, edited by David Aldridge, Jessica Kingsley Publishers, London, 1999, 95-104. Wilson, V. E., and Cummings, M. S. Learned, Self-Regulation, York St. A.& M., Toronto, 2015.
Journal Articles
Baime, Michael J., “Meditation and Mindfulness”, In: Essentials of Complementary and Alternative Medicine, Lippincott, Williams and Wilkins, New York: 1999, pp. 523-537. Balick, M. J., and R. Lee, “The power of sound: Ethnomedical tradition and modern science.” In: Alternative Therapies 9, 2003, pp. 63-72. Balkwill, L. L., and Thompson, W. F., “A cross-cultural investigation of the perception of emotion in music: Psychophysical and cultural cues”. In: Music Perception: An Interdisciplinary Journal, Vol. 17, 1999, pp. 43-64.
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Cahn, R. B., and J. Polich, “Meditation states and traits: EEG, ERP, and neuroimaging studies”. In: Psychological Bulletin 132, no. 2, 2006, pp. 180-211. Gabrielsson, A., and P. N. Juslin, “Emotional expression in music performance: Between the performer's intention and the listener's experience”, In: Psychology of Music, 1996, pp. 68-91. Gaston, E. T., “Dynamic music factors in mood change”, In: Music Educators Journal, 1951, pp. 42-44. Gilman, L., and F. Paperte, “Music and your emotions” In: Journal of Clinical and Experimental Psychopathology and Quarterly Review of Psychiatry and Neurology (Liveright), 1949, pp. 9-13. Hevner, K., “Experimental Studies of the Elements of Expression in Music”, In: The American Journal of Psychology, 48, 1936, pp. 246-268. Khobragade, Y., Khobragade, S., and Abbas, A. bin L. Michelle, “Hypertension and meditation: can meditation be useful in preventing hypertension?” In: Int. Journal of Community Medicine and Public Health, 3, 2016, pp. 1685-1695. Lefevre, Michelle, “Playing with sound: the therapeutic use of music in direct work with children” In: Child and Family Social Work, 9, 2004, pp. 333-345. Raffone, A., and N. Srinivasan, “The exploration of meditation in the neuroscience of attention and consciousness”, In: Cognitive Processing, 2010, pp. 1-7. Smith, J. L., and J. Noon, “Objective measurement of mood change induced by contemporary music” In: Journal of Psyhiatric and Mental Health Nursing, 5, 1998, pp. 403-408. Strevy, S. R., Listen to the music, In: Nursing, 29, 1999, pp. 32-38. Taylor, I.A., and F. Paperte, “Current Theory and Research in the Effects of Music on Behaviour”, In: Journal of Aesthetics, 17, no. 2, 1958, pp. 251-258.
Web Sites
Consumers, Dorland's Medical Dictionary for Health, The Free Dictionary. http://medical-dictionary.thefreedictionary.com/meditation (accessed Nov. 7, 2016). Madani, Linda, “The Power of Mantra Chanting”, In: Intuitive Flow, Aug. 06, 2016. http://www.intuitiveflow.com (accessed Jan. 9, 2017).
Ruth, Diana St, BBC UK, Religions, 08 18, 2005. http://www.bbc.co.uk/religion/religions/buddhism/history/britishbuddhism_1. shtml (accessed Oct. 15, 2016).
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Appendix A: Types of Meditation
A brief description about the meditation types mentioned in the paper. Chakra Meditation - the practitioner focuses on one of the seven chakras of the body (centers of energy), typically doing some visualizations and chanting a specific mantra for each chakra. Guided Meditation - is a process by which one or more participants meditate with the help of a meditation teacher, or by listening to a guided meditation recording, helping to guide the meditator’s attention to achieve a meditative state. Mindfulness Meditation - is the practice of intentionally focusing on the present moment, while calmly acknowledging and non-judgmentally paying attention to the sensations, thoughts, and emotions that arise. Sound Meditation - the type of meditation that is focusing on sound. Firstly, starts with meditation on external sounds, such as music, whereby the practitioner focuses all his attention on just hearing, to calm the mind. The final goal is to hear the internal sounds of the body and mind. Taoist Meditation - the main characteristic of this type of meditation is the generation, transformation, and circulation of inner energy. The purpose is to calm the body and mind, unify body and spirit, find inner peace. Transcendental Meditation - a technique for detaching oneself from anxiety and promoting harmony and self-realization by meditation, it involves the use of a mantra. Vipassana Meditation - in general emphasize starting with mindfulness of breath in the first stages, to stabilize the mind, then the practice moves on to developing clear insight on the bodily sensations and mental occurrences, noticing them moment by moment and not clinging to any. Zen Meditation - is a Japanese school of meditation emphasizing the value of meditation and intuition, revolves around observation of your thoughts and how mind and body operate.
84 STUDIA UBB MUSICA, LXIII, 2, 2018 (p. 85 – 102) (RECOMMENDED CITATION) DOI:10.24193/subbmusica.2018.2.08
THE IMPACT OF MUSIC THERAPY SESSIONS ON CHILDREN DIAGNOSED WITH PROGRESSIVE CHRONIC ILLNESS – A PILOT PROGRAM1
LOIS VĂDUVA2 – ANNAMARIA BALLA3
SUMMARY. This research proposes to analyse the impact that music therapy sessions had on children diagnosed with progressive chronic illness. During a period of nine months, a group of twenty children benefitted from music therapy sessions that were conducted using improvisation, passive listening, rhythmic grounding and composition. Each music therapy session was prepared with a procedure plan that had specific goals and objectives, depending of the child’s age, temperament, diagnosis and needs. In order to analyse the results of these sessions, clinical observation sheets were filed at the beginning and the end of each session and this paper aims to present the results of this research. The observation sheets included three main domains: facial expression, behaviour and emotions, all with different components that are important in evaluating a child’s response to the therapy. An important finding was that fear, agitation and fury formed a triad, being dependent on each other. Also, the variable of joy seemed to have the most impact, as it was central to other variables such as: touch, look, eye brightness, language, position of the body and position of the head. The results of this pilot program indicate the music therapy has a positive impact on children with progressive chronic illness and it should be further developed and implemented in other parts of the country.
Keywords: Music therapy, progressive chronic illness, clinical observation sheets, anxiety tests.
1 The pilot program, Harmonies for Children in Palliative Care, was possible through the support offered by the MOL program for Children’s Health and the Foundation for Community, Cluj-Napoca. 2 Lecturer at Emanuel University of Oradea, PhD, [email protected] 3 Lecturer at Emanuel University of Oradea, PhD, [email protected].
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Introduction During a period of nine months, a group of faculty and students from the music department at Emanuel University of Oradea developed a music therapy pilot program using the Nordoff-Robbins model. 4 This model of music therapy focuses mainly on creative music therapy and can be used both individually and in a group setting. The purpose of these sessions was to help children with progressive chronic illness deal with fear and anxieties related to their illness and promote a sense of well-being. Each session was carefully prepared through a procedure plan that included specific goals and objectives5, which was continually adapted to fit the child’s needs. Even though each child has individual need that must be assessed, there are three main categories of goals and objectives that are common to children with cancer. These three categories are: cancer treatment and hospital goals, that take into account the reduction of fear, anxiety and stress; social and emotional goals and musical goals.6 Given the diagnosis of the trial group, it was very important that the students and faculty assess the medical condition of the child prior to the music therapy session and change their plans accordingly. Some of the children in the group were in the oncology sector and due to their condition, their immunity would sometimes plummet, therefore being kept in isolation. In these cases, the therapy also focused on communication, speech and socialization. To analyse the effect of these music therapy sessions, observation sheets were completed both at the beginning and the end of session. These sheets took into account three main categories: facial expression, behaviour and emotions. The purpose was to determine if music therapy had an impact on lowering the level of fear and anxiety, while also elevating the feelings of joy and peace.
Literature review The subject of music therapy used as an alternative therapy for children diagnosed with progressive chronic illness has started to receive more attention from theoreticians and practitioners. This subject is part of a
4 Nordoff, Paul, Robbins, Clive, Creative Music Therapy: A Guide to Fostering Clinical Musicianship, 2nd Edition, Gilsum, NH: Barcelona Publishers, 2007, pp. 367-457. 5 Berger, Dorita S., On Developing Music Therapy Goals and Objectives, in Voices, A World Forum for Music Therapy, March 2009, vol. 9, nr. 1, https://doi.org/10.15845/voices.v9i1.362, date accessed: 07 September 2018 6 Reid, Philippa, Music Therapy for Children and Adolescents Diagnosed with Cancer, in The Oxford Handbook of Music Therapy, Oxford University Press, London, 2016, pp. 66-89.
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larger pool of research that aims to analyse the effect that music has on hospitalized patients and on people diagnosed with serious, sometimes life- threatening illnesses. One of the key elements of music therapy is the positive effect it has on the mood of the patient. A number of studies have shown that listening to music can decrease anxiety and promote a sense of well-being.7 Another reason to implement music therapy is the effect is having on pain. In hospital settings, patients after a surgical treatment experienced less perception of pain when listening to music by comparison to those patients who did not listen to music.8 A study done on two hundred patients hospitalized at University Hospitals Case Medical Centre aimed to analyse the difference on pain perception between patients that received just standard care and patients that received standard care with the inclusion of music therapy. The results of the study indicated that the music therapy group patients had a lower level of pain, even after a single session of music therapy.9 Another important facet of music therapy is the impact it has in palliative care patients. Studies have indicated that people in hospice care have less stress and anxiety and experience more comfort, when they are part of a music therapy program.10 For the topic of this research, the effect of music therapy on children is of great interest, as it is specifically in the area of paediatric illnesses. There have been studies done to measure the level in which music therapy practices improve the quality of life in hospitalized children. For example, a study published by Barrera et al. (2002) showed that music therapy had a positive impact and improved the emotional well-being of hospitalized children diagnosed with cancer.11
7 Aasgaard, Trygve, Music Therapy as Milieu in the Hospice and Paedriatic Oncology Ward, in Music Therapy in Palliative Care: New Voices, David Aldridge (ed.), Ed. Jessica Kingsley Publishers, London, 1999, pp. 29-43; Evans, David, The effectiveness of music as an intervention for hospital patients: a systematic review, in Journal of Advanced Nursing, Ed. Wiley Online Library, New Jersey, 2002, vol. 37, pp. 8 –18. https://doi.org/10.1046/j.1365-2648.2002.02052.x, date accessed, 03 September 2018. 8 Dunn, Kelly, Music and the reduction of post-operative pain, in Nursing Standard, Ed. Royal College of Nursing, London, 2004, vol. 18, pp. 33–39. 9 Gutgsell, Kathy Jo, Schluchter, Mark, Margevicius, Seunghee, DeGolia, Peter A., McLaughlin Beth, Harris, Mariel, Mecklenburg, Janice, Wiencek Clareen, Music Therapy Reduces Pain in Palliative Care Patients: A Randomized Controlled Trial, in Journal of Pain and Symptom Management, Ed. Elsevier, Amsterdam, 2013, vol. 45, nr. 5, pp. 822- 831. 10 Krout, Robert E., The effects of single-session music therapy interventions on the observed and self-reported levels of pain control, physical comfort, and relaxation of hospice patients, in American Journal of Hospice and Palliative Care, Ed. Sage Publications, 2001, vol. 18, nr. 16, pp. 383–390. https://doi.org/10.1177/104990910101800607, date accessed 25 August 2018. 11 Barrera, Maru. E., Rykov, Mary H., Doyle, Sandra L., The effects of interactive music therapy on hospitalized children with cancer: a pilot study, in Psycho‐Oncology, Ed. John Wiley & Sons, New Jersey, 2002, vol. 11, pp. 379-388. https://doi.org/10.1002/pon.589, date accessed 27 August 2018.
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A 2013 study12 on music therapy for children with cancer presents the diverse methods that can be utilized with this population. The most beneficial procedures are receptive music therapy, improvisational music therapy, re- creative music therapy and compositional music therapy. Receptive music therapy can be used either for a while session, or just for a limited time and is very useful in cases in which the child is very agitated and nervous. This procedure requires the child to listen to relaxing music and it is proven to reduce anxiety. Improvisational music therapy is efficient for children, as it uses playtime and it is a non-threatening way to get small patients to express their emotions. Re-creative music therapy is usually based on songs or fragments of songs that the child is already familiar with, but there are exceptions in which new songs can be used. This procedure is useful for group settings and is beneficial in dealing with integration and socialization issues. Compositional music therapy is used to encourage the expression of emotions and feelings and it can also be a significant way in which to observe how the child is coping with the illness and treatment. To narrow down the research area for our study, the study on music therapy with children in palliative care13 is of even great importance. Even though the methods used in this case are the same at those utilized with children diagnosed with cancer, the most significant difference is the drastic changes that can take place from one session to the next. Given the medical circumstances, children in palliative care may be more uncomfortable and in pain, they might also have less and less energy to engage in musical activities. As a result, music therapy sessions must take into account the physical and emotional aspects of both the child and their family. Out of the four methods used in sessions with children in palliative care, receptive music therapy is especially beneficial, as it promotes relaxation. This method can be implemented using a multi-modal approach14, with sound, touch and general ambiance. This article proposes to complement the existing research by providing the results of a trial period in which music therapy was used to help children in palliative care in Oradea, Romania.
Methodology Over a period of nine months, twenty children benefitted from music therapy sessions, either in a hospital setting or in their homes. In order to measure the impact of the program, the faculty and students involved in the
12 Dun, Beth, Children with Cancer, in Guidelines for Music Therapy Practice in Pediatric care, Joke Bradt (ed.), Ed. Barcelona Publishers, New Braunfels, Texas, pp. 290-323. 13 Lindenfelser, Kathryn, Palliative and End-of-Life Care for Children, in Guidelines for Music Therapy Practice in Pediatric care, Joke Bradt (ed.), Ed. Barcelona Publishers, 2013, New Braunfels, Texas, pp. 324-355. 14 Grocke, Denise, Wigram, Tony, Receptive Methods in Music Therapy, Ed. Jessica Kingsley Publishers, London, 2007, pp. 77-79.
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program monitored the progress of the children through clinical observation sheets. These surveys were completed before and after each session, to provide a clear picture in regards to the benefits of music therapy in children diagnosed with progressive chronic illness. The children that took part in this pilot program had ages ranging from two years to eighteen years. Also, out of the group, eleven were boys and nine were girls. Regarding the diagnosis, nine of the children were in oncology treatment, two were diagnosed with Epidermolysis bullosa and nine were diagnosed with various blood related diseases. All the children had to receive on-going treatment, which impended them from living normal lives, as most of these children required extensive hospital stays. The clinical observation sheets took into account three categories: facial expression, behaviour and emotions. The facial expression included the visual component, if the child avoided or not to look at the therapist. Avoidance indicated either shyness or lack of trust. The level of brightness in the eyes was analysed to see if the children were alert and in able to concentrate on the activities initiated during the music therapy session. Another component observed in this category was the position of the lips, if the corners of the mouth were in a downward position, then the child was most likely sad or upset. If the corners of the mouth were in an upward position, then the child was presumably smiling. The last variable in this category was the position of the head, the options being head held down, to the side, straight or up. The second category in the clinical observation sheets was behaviour, the components analysed being body language and language. The body language had three options, from avoidance, to acceptance and lastly hugs. This was to determine the level of attachment that the children developed towards the therapist during the sessions. Language was another aspect monitored and children were observed to be in the following categories: avoidance, stubborn silence, words and sentences. At this point it is important to note that smaller children spoke more using just words and were more prone to avoidance or stubborn silence. There were a few exceptions, in which older children were extremely shy in the beginning and displayed a tendency towards stubborn silence. The last main category was emotions, which were noted with numbers from 1 (very low) to 5 (very high). The emotions examined were joy, peace, agitation, anger, fear, disappointment and hope. After gathering the information gleaned through the clinical observation sheets, we set out to first analyse the difference between the beginning and the end of the first session, to determine if there were any noted improvements
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in the children. Afterwards, we also compared the observations sheets noted during the second session and fifth sessions to evaluate the impact of the music therapy sessions.
Results of the research The analysis of the data collected in the nine months of music therapy sessions is presented in the following table: Table 1
Variable Z P< 0,05 Average N. Sum of rankings rankings Visual -3,16 0,002 1 = 0 N = 0 1 = 0 component 2 = 5,50 N =10 2 = 55 Position of lips -2,65 0,008 1 = 0 N = 0 1 = 0 2 =4,00 N =7 2 = 2,28 Position of head -2,86 0,004 1= 1,5 N =1 1 = 1,50 2 = 6,45 N =10 2 = 64,50 Body Language -3,16 0,002 1 = 0 N = 0 1 = 0 2 = 5,50 N =10 2 = 55 Speech -2,07 0,03 1 = 4,50 N = 3 1 = 13,50 2 = 7,17 N = 9 2 = 64,50 Joy -3,70 0,001 1 = 0 N = 0 1 = 0 2 = 8,50 N = 16 2 = 136 Peace -2,74 0,006 1 = 0 N = 0 1 = 0 2 = 5 N = 9 2 = 45 Anger -1,85 0,05 1 = 2,50 N = 4 1 = 10 2 = 0 N = 0 2 = 0 Fear -2,83 0,005 1=8,15 N = 13 1 = 106 2 = 7 N = 2 2 = 14 Disappointment -2,12 0,03 1 = 4,5 N = 7 1 = 31,50 2 = 4,5 N = 1 2 = 4,50 Hope - 3,87 0,001 1 = 0 N = 0 1 = 0 2 = 8 N = 15 2 = 120
First Session statistics* * Even if statistically it is not noticeable, at the patient level, there were some positive modifications that were observed: regarding eye brightness, there was no statistical difference noticed during the first session, in the sense that one child had a noted improvement, while nineteen children were remarked to have stayed the same; with reference to motor function, it was noted that one child was perceived to have improved during the session, while nineteen children stayed the same. As to the component of touch, three children were
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observed to have improved during the first session, while seventeen children did not present any difference. In regard to agitation, five children were more agitated after the session, this being explained by their excitement to play and have company; one child was less agitated at the end of the session and fourteen children were perceived to have remained the same. Form a qualitative point of view, we can also state the following changes: from a visual component point of view, at the beginning of the session, twelve out of twenty children avoided looking at the therapist, while at the end of the hour, just two children continued to avoid looking at their therapist. The position of the lips (if the corners are upward into a smile or downward into a sad expression) indicated that at the beginning of the meeting, seventeen children had the corners of their mouth downward and three children had the corners of their mouths in an upward position. The situation changed at the end of the sessions, when ten children had the corners of their mouth turned upward, indicating a smile. The position of the head was another indicator measured, with nine children holding their head down at the beginning of the therapy, seven children held their head to the side, one child held his head high and three children held their head in a straight position. At the end of the first session, only three children continued to hold their head down, while eleven held their head straight; three held their head up and another three children held their head to the side. Avoidance, acceptance and hugs were the three main components that measured the position of the body. In the beginning, eleven children were perceived to manifest avoidance, while eight were accepting and one gave a hug to the therapist. By the end of the session, the situation changed to just four children still appearing to avoid, twelve were accepting and four wanted to give a hug. The language variable was analysed by taking into account the possibilities of stubborn silence, avoidance of speech, speaking just words or speaking in sentences. At the onset of the sitting, five children demonstrated stubborn silence, six avoided speaking with the therapist, six spoke in words and three spoke in sentences. At the closing of the session, four children maintained stubborn silence, only one continued to avoid speaking, seven spoke words and eight spoke in sentences. The motor function was observed to see if there was any difference in the activity level of the children, in the cases in which such a thing was possible. We have to take into account the number of children whose illness rendered them immobile. In the beginning, eight children were immobile, while twelve were active, while at the end of the hour, seven children were immobile, while thirteen were active. Regarding touch, we measured how many children avoided physical contact and how many wished to be touched. At the initiation of the therapy, we
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noticed that twelve children avoided being touched and eight children initiated physical contact. The situation at the end of the therapy, the number of children who initiated physical contact grew to eleven. We have observed that one of the key variables is joy. At the onset, seven children were perceived to have very low joy, three had a low level and ten had a medium level of joy. Interestingly, no children were in the category of high and very high levels of joy. This drastically changed after the session, where just two children maintained a very low level of joy, while five remained with a low level, three at a medium level. The positive outcome was that seven children indicated a high level of joy and three expressed a high level of joy. Peace was another emotion taken into account, and the beginning analysis showed that four children had a very low level of peace; two indicated a low level, while five were perceived to be at a medium level. A high level of peace was observed in eight children and only one had a very high level of peace. Contrastingly, at the end of the first session, no children were seen to have a very low level of peace, two had a low level and six were placed in the medium range. Nine children were determined to have a high level of peace and three were in the very high category. Another variable observed was the presence of agitation, which can either be present due to excitement for the music therapy session, which would have a positive connotation. Contrastingly, agitation could indicate a negative element, if it was due to illness, frustration or a general bad mood. The beginning of the first session saw six children with a very low dose of agitation, eight with a low level of agitation and two in the medium range. Just one child was perceived to be in the high agitation category and three in the very high agitation spectrum. After the session, seven children were placed in the very low agitation range, while eight were perceived to have a low level of agitation. Three children were now in the medium range and just two children remained in the high and very high agitation categories. In reference to anger, most of the children analysed in the pilot program were not perceived to suffer from high level of anger. At the initial interaction, thirteen children indicated a very low level of anger; four were considered to have low feelings of anger, while one child had a high indicator of anger and another two had very high levels of anger. After the session, the situation indicated that fourteen children now had very low levels of anger, while four maintained low feelings of anger. Three children were placed in the medium category and one remained with a high dose of anger. It is to be noted that no children remained in the very high anger range at the conclusion of the therapy. Given the prognosis of the pilot group, fear is a very important component that was measured during the music therapy program. At the onset of the first session, one child had a very low level of hear, while seven indicated a low level; five were placed in the medium range; two children were perceived
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to have a high level of fear and five children were considered to be in the very high fear range. At the end of the therapy, the situation changed, as six children had a very low level of fear, five were placed in the low range; another five children were observed to have a medium extent of fear, and just four children remained in the high and very high category, two in each slot. Concerning the feeling of disappointment, at the beginning of the therapy, three children had a very low spectrum of disappointment; seven were in the low range, while six were in the medium category and four children were highly disappointed. After the session, the number of children in the very low range increased to five, while in the low range, the number was raised to six. Eight children were now in the medium category and just one in the high range. Hope was the last variable analysed and the commencement of the hour saw three children with a very low hope; five with low hope, whilst ten were established in the medium spectrum. Just two children had high hopes and no children were placed in the very high hope category. The end of the hour indicated a number of changes, with just one child having very low hope; three were with a low feeling of hope, while seven were located in the medium range. Among the positive outcomes, seven children were now in the high range and two were even in the very high range, a category missing before. Table 2 Variable Z P< 0,05 Average N. Sum of rankings rankings Visual -2 0,04 1 = 0 N = 0 1 = 0 component 2 = 2,50 N = 4 2 = 10 Eye brightness -2 0,04 1 = 0 N = 0 1 = 0 2 = 2,50 N = 4 2 = 10 Position of lips -2,45 0,01 1 = 0 N = 0 1 = 0 2 = 3,5 N = 6 2 = 21 Body Language -2 0,04 1 = 0 N = 0 1 = 0 2 = 2,5 N = 4 2 = 10 Joy -2,59 0,01 1 = 0 N = 0 1 = 0 2 = 4,5 N = 8 2 = 36 Peace -2,12 0,03 1 = 0 N = 0 1 = 0 2 = 3 N = 5 2 = 15 Fear -2,06 0,03 1= 3 N = 5 1 = 15 2 = 0 N = 0 2 = 0 Disappointment -2,26 0,02 1 = 3,50 N = 6 1 = 21 2 = 0 N = 0 2 = 0 Hope -2,59 0,01 1 = 0 N = 0 1 = 0 2 = 4,50 N = 8 2 = 36 Second Session statistics* *The variables in the table are the ones that are statistically noticeable, so in the qualitative analyses, we will include all that variables that have
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significance at the patient level. At this point in the research, four children had passed away and another eight sought treatment in other areas, thus the study continued with eight children. The first variable, visual component saw a change from the beginning of the session, in which four children avoided looking at the therapist and four did not avoid looking. In the end, all eight children were looking at the therapist. Regarding eye brightness, before the session started, five children were not perceived to have posses it, while three did. Afterwards, the number of children without eye brightness decreased from five to one and seven children were noticed to have brighter eyes. The position of the lips at the beginning of the second session indicated that six children had the corners of the lips downward, while just two had the corners of their lips into an upward position. By the end of the session, all eight children had the corners of their lips in an upward position, indicating varying levels of smiles. We have observed that the position of the head saw improvements even from the first session, as at the onset of the second therapy hour, just one child held his head down, while another held his head to the side, with the majority holding their head straight. After the second session, not one child was observed to hold his head down, with four holding their head to the side and four holding their head straight. In reference to body language, the data indicates that in the beginning of the second session, all eight children showed acceptance, while at the end of the session, the group was split into two categories, with four maintaining acceptance, while four decided they wanted a hug. Another variable analysed was language, the second therapy commencing with one child avoiding communication, five spoke in words and just two communicated in sentences. The situation changed in the end with no child avoiding to speak, thus four talked using just words and another four talked in sentences. The motor function was not perceived to suffer great modifications, as in the beginning two children were immobile and six were active. In the end, the numbers changed to just one child remaining immobile and seven being active. Touch was an important factor in determining the trust gained by the therapist during the second session. At the beginning, three children avoided touch, while five indicated that they wished to be touched. By the time the session ended, all eight children indicated that touch was a welcome contact.
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On the subject of joy, at the initiation of the second session, two children had a very low level of joy; five were placed in the medium range and just one child indicated a high level of joy. Following the music therapy, no children remained in the low level; five maintained their medium joy status, while two were perceived to be in the very high joy level. The peace component also saw an improvement, due to the fact that three children had a low spectrum of peace; one child was considered in the medium category and four had a high peace level in the outset of the second session. Afterwards, no children remained in the low range, five were considered in the high peace level and one in the very high feeling of peace spectrum. In regard to agitation, there were slight modifications. The second session saw six children with a very low threshold of agitation and two in the medium level. By the time the hour was finished, six children maintained their very low agitation status, one was placed in the low agitation category and another remained in the medium range. The category of anger did not suffer major shifts, from six children feeling very low anger at the beginning of the second session, the number increased to seven by the end. Also, at the beginning, one child was in the low anger category and one on the medium category, but by the completion of the session, just one child remained in the low anger category and none in the medium one. Fear was a variable in which we observed more changes, the diagnosis and type of treatment also influencing this component. At the onset of the second session, two children had very low fear, another two experienced low fear, one child was in the medium range and three children had a high level of fear. After the session, the number of children with very low fear increased to five, while one child had low fear and two were in the medium range. No children remained in the high level of fear range. In regards to disappointment, at the induction of the second session, two children had a very low disappointment level, two were in the medium range; three children had a high level of disappointment and one was considered to have a very high level of disappointment. The termination of the session meant that two children maintained a very low disappointment level, the number of children with a low level increased to four and four were in the medium category. No children remained in the very high disappointment spectrum. The last variable of hope saw an improvement during the second session. In the beginning, one child had very low hope, another was in the low category and six were placed in the medium range. After the session, seven children were placed in the high hope category and one even transitioned into the very high hope level. No children remained in the very low, low, or medium ranges.
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Table 3
Variable Z P< 0,10 Average N. Sum of rankings rankings Position of -2,04 0,04 1 = 0 N = 0 1 = 0 head 2 = 3 N = 5 2 = 15 Agitation + 2,27 0,02 1 = 3,50 N = 6 1 = 21 2 = 0 N = 0 2 = 0
Comparison between the beginning of the first session and the beginning of the second session* * These were the two statistically noticeable variables, but as we notice in the qualitative analysis, all variables saw improvements. The aim was to analyse if the benefits achieved in the first session were maintained until the next music therapy session
Table 4
Variable Z P< 0,10 Average N. Sum of rankings rankings Visual -1,73 0,08 1 = 0 N = 0 1 = 0 component 2 = 2 N = 3 2 = 6 Eye brightness -1,73 0,08 1 = 0 N = 0 1 = 0 2 = 2 N = 3 2 = 6 Position of lips -2 0,04 1 = 0 N = 0 1 = 0 2 = 2,5 N = 4 2 = 10 Joy -1,84 0,06 1 = 0 N = 0 1 = 0 2 = 2,50 N = 4 2 = 10 (80%) Hope -2,12 0,03 1 = 0 N = 0 1 = 0 2 = 3 N = 5 2 = 15 (100%)
Fifth Session Statistics*
* Due to the fact that the number of children who benefitted from 5 or more music therapy sessions decreased to five children (a few children passed away during the program and some were moved to other hospitals in the country for the rest of their treatment), we increased the threshold of error to 10%.
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Also, as in the last two sessions analysed, the five variables noted in the table are the ones that were statistically noticeable, but in the qualitative analysis, we can note the positive outcomes at the patient level. In the beginning of the fifth session, three children avoided visual contact, while two welcomed it. Be the end of the session, all five children- maintained eye contact with the therapist. The perceived eye brightness changed from four children that did not manifest it at the onset to four that did exhibit eye brightness and only one that continued without it. The position of lips also saw an increase from one child out of five having the corners downward at the beginning to all five having the corners of their mouth upward by the end of the session. The four remaining children maintained their smile during the session. In regards to the position of the head, at the induction of the fifth session, two children held their head down, one held his head high and two had their head held straight. After the session, no children held their head down, two held it high and three held their head straight. The body language of the children at the starting point of the hour was as follows: two children indicated avoidance, one child was accepting and two children wanted a hug. At the end, no children displayed an avoidance attitude, two children were accepting and three wanted to hug the therapist. With respect to language, interestingly two children indicated stubborn silence at the beginning, one child avoided speaking and two spoke in sentences. Afterwards, no children displayed stubborn silence or avoidance, one child speaking using words and the remaining four speaking in sentences. The motor function also saw improvement, from two children immobile and just three active at the onset of the session, to all five children active after the end of the music therapy hour. The variable of touch was also observed, with two children avoiding and three seeking touch at the beginning of the session. The situation at the end of the session changed, with just one child avoiding and four seeking to be touched. We found that one of the key components is joy, as also indicated in the fifth session analysis. At the commencement, two children had a very low level of joy, another two showed a low level and just one child displayed a high dose of joy. After the session, no children remained in the very low and low ranges, with three children moving to the medium category and two in the very high joy spectrum. Peace was also surveyed in the fifth session and we noticed that in the beginning, one child had a very low peace level, two were in the medium range and the other two were in the high category. At the termination of the
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therapy, the data indicated that no children remained in the very low levels, as two were placed in the medium range, two remained in the high category and one child displayed a very high peace level. Concerning the variable of agitation, all five children were initially placed in the very low threshold, but by the end of the session, just four were maintained in the same category, as one child changed to the very high level. In relation to anger, there were no changes during the session, as all five children displayed from beginning to end a very low level of anger. The variable of fear was observed as following: at the start of the music therapy, two children had a very low fear, one was placed in the low category, one child had a medium relation to fear and one had a very high fear level. After the session, three children had a very low fear; one remained in the low category and one child in the medium one. Disappointment at the beginning of the fifth session was distributed between one child in the very low level and one child with low disappointment, one in the medium range and two children in the high category. The termination of the session saw some changes, as one child remained in the very low level, three were in the low category and one in the medium level. No children remained in the high category of disappointment. Another important variable is hope, and in the fifth session, the onset saw one child with a very low level of hope, two with low hope, one child in the medium category and one child with high hope. After the session, no children remained in the very low and low ranges. Two children were in the medium category, one child in the high hope level and two in the very high hope category.
Table 5
Variables rho P Visual/ eye brightness 1 0,001 Visual/ position of lips 0,51 0,02 Visual/ body language 0,69 0,01 Visual/motor function 0,46 0,04 Visual/joy 0,65 0,002 Visual/fear -0,58 0,008 Visual/ disappointment -0,78 0,001 Visual/hope 0,54 0,01
Eye brightness/ position of lips 0,51 0,02 Eye brightness/ body language 0,69 0,01 Eye brightness/ motor function 0,46 0,04 Eye brightness/joy 0,65 0,002 Eye brightness/fear -0,58 0,008
98 THE IMPACT OF MUSIC THERAPY SESSIONS ON CHILDREN DIAGNOSED...
Eye brightness/ disappointment -0,78 0,001 Eye brightness/hope 0,54 0,01
Position of lips/touch 0,51 0,02
Position of head /speech 0,51 0,02 Position of head / motor function 0,51 0,02 Position of head / joy 0,70 0,001 Position of head /hope 0,56 0,01
Body Language/touch 0,52 0,01 Body Language/joy 0,70 0,001 Body Language/fear -0,56 0,01 Body Language/disappointment -0,65 0,002 Body Language/hope 0,54 0,01
Speech/joy 0,43 0,05 Speech/hope 0,52 0,01
Motor function/disappointment -0,48 0,03 Motor function/hope 0,52 0,01
Touch/joy 0,65 0,002
Joy/peace 0,54 0,01 Joy/fear -0,54 0,01 Joy/ disappointment -0,54 0,01 Joy/hope 0,72 0,001
Peace/agitation -0,72 0,001 Peace/anger -0,75 0,001 Peace/fear -0,54 0,01
Agitation/anger 0,79 0,001 Agitation/fear 0,61 0,005 Anger/fear 0,63 0,003
Fear/ disappointment 0,66 0,002
Disappointment/hope -0,60 0,005 Bivariate correlation – phase 1
99 LOIS VĂDUVA – ANNAMARIA BALLA
Another important factor analysed was the correlation between items, to determine if the therapy has an impact on two items at the same time. As seen in table 5 and in figure 1, regarding emotions, there is a triad that formed between fear, anger and agitation, meaning that of either of these emotions suffers a change, then the other two emotions will also be affected. For the music therapy sessions, this is a significant finding, because if a child’s level of fear decreases, then his anger and agitation will also decline. At the other side of the spectrum, we can observe that the component of joy has a direct impact on the visual component, eye brightness, touch, speech, position of head and body language. This means that increasing the level of joy is paramount to a child’s well-being and should be at the center of music therapy sessions. Given this information, it is encouraging to see that even after the first session, the statistics indicate a significant increase in the levels of happiness.
Figure 1
Visual component Eye brightness
Joy
Speech Position of head Peace
Body language
Emotions Behaviour
Conclusions: The results of the music therapy sessions administered to twenty children diagnosed with progressive chronic illness indicate that there were positive outcomes to these sessions and that they should continue and be extended to more children and in more parts of the country.
100 THE IMPACT OF MUSIC THERAPY SESSIONS ON CHILDREN DIAGNOSED...
Among the most significant findings of this research is that music therapy had an important impact on increasing the level of happiness in these children, which in turn elevated and influenced other key components. Also, after just one session, the majorities of children experienced less fear and anxiety, were more communicative and had better social skills. This finding indicates that music therapy can be a powerful tool that can be used to address emotional, behavioural and physical needs of children diagnosed with serious illnesses. The limitations of this study consist in a relatively small number of children and also the fact that the research was done in a single location. Another constraint was the impossibility in some cases to establish a regular music therapy schedule, due to the fact that the treatment sometimes necessitated the children to be moved to other hospitals in the country or abroad. In the future, research could be extended to a larger number of children and more locations throughout the country, as this would offer a clearer result on the impact of music therapy on children diagnosed with progressive chronic illnesses. From the data collected from this pilot program, the results are encouraging and indicate a necessity to continue and develop this program further.
REFERENCES
Aasgaard, Trygve, Music Therapy as Milieu in the Hospice and Paedriatic Oncology Ward, in Music Therapy in Palliative Care: New Voices, David Aldridge (ed.), Ed. Jessica Kingsley Publishers, London, 1999, pp. 29-43 Barrera, Maru. E., Rykov, Mary H., Doyle, Sandra L., The effects of interactive music therapy on hospitalized children with cancer: a pilot study, in Psycho Oncology, Ed. John Wiley & Sons, New Jersey, 2002, vol. 11, pp. 379-388. https://doi.org/10.1002/pon.589, date accessed 27 August 2018. Berger, Dorita S., On Developing Music Therapy Goals and Objectives, in Voices, A World Forum for Music Therapy, March 2009, vol. 9, nr. 1 https://doi.org/10.15845/voices.v9i1.362, date accessed: 07 September 2018 Dun, Beth, Children with Cancer, in Guidelines for Music Therapy Practice in Pediatric care, Joke Bradt (ed.), Ed. Barcelona Publishers, New Braunfels, Texas, 2013, pp. 290-323. Dunn, Kelly, Music and the reduction of post-operative pain, in Nursing Standard, Ed. Royal College of Nursing, London, 2004, vol. 18, pp. 33–39.
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Evans, David, The effectiveness of music as an intervention for hospital patients: a systematic review, in Journal of Advanced Nursing, Ed. Wiley Online Library, New Jersey, 2002, vol. 37, pp. 8 –18. https://doi.org/10.1046/j.1365-2648.2002.02052.x, date accessed, 03 September 2018. Grocke, Denise, Wigram, Tony, Receptive Methods in Music Therapy, Ed. Jessica Kingsley Publishers, London, 2007. Gutgsell, Kathy Jo, Schluchter, Mark, Margevicius, Seunghee, DeGolia, Peter A., McLaughlin Beth, Harris, Mariel, Mecklenburg, Janice, Wiencek Clareen, Music Therapy Reduces Pain in Palliative Care Patients: A Randomized Controlled Trial, in Journal of Pain and Symptom Management, Ed. Elsevier, Amsterdam, 2013, vol. 45, nr. 5, pp. 822- 831. Krout, Robert E., The effects of single-session music therapy interventions on the observed and self-reported levels of pain control, physical comfort, and relaxation of hospice patients, in American Journal of Hospice and Palliative Care, Ed. Sage Publications, 2001, vol. 18, nr. 16, pp. 383–390. https://doi.org/10.1177/104990910101800607, date accessed 25 August 2018. Lindenfelser, Kathryn, Palliative and End-of-Life Care for Children, in Guidelines for Music Therapy Practice in Pediatric care, Joke Bradt (ed.), Ed. Barcelona Publishers, New Braunfels, Texas, 2013, pp. 324-355. Nordoff, Paul, Robbins, Clive, Creative Music Therapy: A Guide to Fostering Clinical Musicianship, 2nd Edition, Ed. Barcelona Publishers, Gilsum, NH, 2007. Reid, Philippa, Music Therapy for Children and Adolescents Diagnosed with Cancer, in The Oxford Handbook of Music Therapy, Oxford University Press, London, 2016, pp. 66-89.
102 STUDIA UBB MUSICA, LXIII, 2, 2018 (p. 103 – 114) (RECOMMENDED CITATION) DOI:10.24193/subbmusica.2018.2.09
THE SOPRANO VOICE TYPE AND ITS IMPORTANCE WITHIN THE OPERETTA GENRE
EVA-ELENA JORDAN1
SUMMARY. This hereby study has two main parts, uneven in length. In the first part we have attempted to classify the types of voices within the genre of operetta, while detailing their functional aspects, focusing on the analysis of the use of the soprano voice for the roles of prima donna and grande dame. In our second part, we have presented the main female roles of the 14 operettas that we will analyze within our doctoral research, classified from the standpoint of their authors. We have also added some interesting facts concerning the great Hungarian operetta composers, as well as mentioned famous performers who portrayed the main roles of these operettas during the time they were performed.
Keywords: prima donna, grande dame, lyrical soprano, spinto soprano
1.1. Operetta and its Voice Types Even after a relatively superficial glance at the types of voices used most frequently in the genre of operetta, we can clearly observe that this genre has also its favorite voices, which are usually associated with well- defined characters. Thus, the main female roles (i.e. those of the prima donna and grande dame, around which the entire work is structured) are written exclusively for sopranos. The protagonists of the second line of female singers are also sopranos. This particular type of voice is called a soubrette, and it’s characterized by a light voice, and has a particularly sprightly stage presence, ensuring the audience has a good time throughout the performance. The mezzo-sopranos and altos appear more rarely in operettas, and they often portray either character roles and antagonists, or older figures. The same
1 PhD Student within the “Gheorghe Dima” Academy of Music, Cluj-Napoca, Soloist at the Hungarian Opera of Cluj, and associate faculty member at Babeş-Bolyai University, Faculty of Reformed Theology.
103 EVA-ELENA JORDAN applies to the use of men's voices in operettas. The lead male roles are written exclusively for tenors, and the love interest of the soubrette, who is usually a good dancer and a comical character, belongs to the same voice type of tenor (buffo). Baritones usually play older or negative characters, and basses, which are the rarest roles, portray character roles, not unlike their alto counterparts.
1.1.1. The Soprano Voice Type in Prima Donna Roles Although at first glance it seems to be a lighter, easier genre, singing in an operetta requires the same level of skill and professionalism as the ones expected from operatic artists. And the prima donna, the first lady, who is at the heart of the operetta’s plot, must be a highly skilled soprano with exceptional training. The most successful soloists cast in prima donna roles are lyrical sopranos, belonging to a subcategory of the soprano voices, characterized by a soft and smooth vocal consistency. The representatives of this vocal genre are endowed with short, narrow vocal cords. Their voice is flexible and highly expressive. They can easily and effortlessly approach even the piano passages written in the high register. There are also prima donna roles in which spinto sopranos are best suited, for instance: Countess Maritza’s Maritza, The Circus Princess’ Fedora, The Merry Widow’s Hanna Glavari or Prince Bob’s Victoria. Their vocal range is richer, especially in the lower registers, and their voice is stronger. Casting lyrical sopranos in such roles is not beneficial as it leads to the straining of the vocal apparatus.2 Generally, for the prima donna roles in operettas, ones needs singers who have a good command of the bel canto vocal technique, have the ability to highlight the appealing elements of their arias, and have a proper diction. This latter requirement is necessary for two reasons: 1. often the text of the arias, duets and ensembles is a component part of the dramatic text; 2, most of the arias and songs featured in operettas later became very popular melodies sung by music lovers everywhere, therefore, their text had to be enunciated correctly, and clearly. (In many cases this requirement is disregarded because some female artists have a superficial approach to the lyrics, being exclusively concerned with the sound of their own voices. The end result is a dull interpretation that does not emphasize the characteristic features of the work’s dramaturgical layer, and fails to capture the attention of the public.) And in terms of the vocal qualities and technique required, we can safely state that the fragments included in the operettas of the elite composers of the genre often have a musical complexity that rivals
2 Kerényi, Miklós György, Az éneklés művészete és pedagógiája (The Art and Pedagogy of Singing). Magyar Világ Kiadó, Budapest, 1998. p. 74.
104 THE SOPRANO VOICE TYPE AND ITS IMPORTANCE WITHIN THE OPERETTA GENRE that of operatic arias. Interpreting them with the ease and serenity that are specific to the content of these works requires a superior mastery of the score and the vocal technique. There are numerous examples of such high caliber prima donne in the history of the Hungarian operetta: at the end of the 19th century the most notable sopranos of the genre in the country’s provinces were: Laura Réthi, Lenke Spányi, Janka Dévai, Liszka Melles; followed by their successors at the beginning of the 20th century: Blanka Anday, Irén Balla Csík, Jolán Baranyai, Ilona Ruzsinszky, Irén Székely.3 And in Budapest, the biggest stars of the genre who delighted audiences were: Lujza Blaha, Sári Fedák and Hanna Honthy.4
1.1.2. The Voice Types of the Grande Dame Roles For these roles, spinto sopranos are preferred, such as Ilona from Gypsy Love, Anna Pavlovna from Szibill, Cecilia from Die Csárdásfürstin, and La Tangolita from Ball at the Savoy. These are female characters that are passed their youth, who, due to their position in society or their life experience, play a decisive role in creating and resolving the conflicts that generate the dramatic situations depicted in the operetta. Given the nature of these roles, portraying a grande dame requires a more determined and stout presence as compared to the prima donna, hence it needs a fuller sounding voice in the middle and lower registers. Whereas prima donnas are naturally guided by their rich score through the plot of the performance, those in grande dame roles are often part of contradictory situations, where they alternately appear either in a negative hypostasis, or in one in which they save the day. For this reason, the protagonists of grande dame roles must be good performers with a rich stage experience.
3 Festetics, Andor, A vidéki színészet rendezése (Ogrnizing the Provincial Theatre). In: Magyar művészeti almanach (Hungarian Art Almanach), edited by Dr. Henrik Incze. Bp., 1904. p. 123. 4 Gál, György Sándor, Operettek könyve (The Book of Operettas), Zeneműkiadó, Budapesta, 1976, p. 241.
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1.2. The Lead Female Roles in the Works of Viennese Operetta Composers of Hungarian Origin Jenő Huszka (1875-1960) - was a longevous composer, who in 1902 set the stage for successful Hungarian operetta composers. He studied music and law at the same time, reaching a high degree of qualification in both fields. Hence, he is employed within the Ministry of Culture, where he meets Ferenc Martos. Alongside Martos, he conceives and finishes his first successful operetta, followed by a four decade long triumphant career. Prince Bob - in this operetta, we are surprised to find not one, but two prima donne: Princess Victoria and young Annie, while the role of grande dame (that of the Queen's) is a speaking part. However, the duality of female voices works, as the character of Annie, a young girl, has a score that lends itself to a lyric-leggiero soprano and her rival, Princess Victoria, who is a slightly more negative character, is more suitable for a spinto soprano. At the world premiere of Prince Bob, which took place at the Népszínház in Budapest on December 20, 1902, Annie's role was portrayed by Gizella Ledofszky, while that of the leading man – Prince Bob – was entrusted - surprisingly - to another soprano who was an emerging star at that time, Sári Fedák.5 Gül baba - in this romantic story there is only one female role, that of Leila, who is the main female protagonist, the prima donna. The other five roles of the piece (as the rest are spoken roles) illustrate the use of male voices in operettas: the scribe Gábor is the leading man, hence, a tenor, Gül baba, Leila’s father – an elderly man - is a baritone, pasha Kucsuk – the negative character – is a bass, the gypsy Muiko – a character role - is a baritone, and Zulficar, the chief eunuch is a tenor buffo. It is obvious, that all these male characters revolve around the young and beautiful Leila. This role was first performed at the Király Színház in Budapest on December 9, 1905 by Lenke Szentgyörgyi, a virtually unknown singer at the time, but who was brilliant on the stage and had a major contribution to achieving the great success of the world premiere.
5 Winkler, Gábor, Operett – Szubjektív kalauz egy varázslatos világban (The Operetta – A Subjective Guide into a Magical World), Tudomány Kiadó, Budapesta, 2013, p. 387.
106 THE SOPRANO VOICE TYPE AND ITS IMPORTANCE WITHIN THE OPERETTA GENRE
Ferenc Lehár (1870-1948) - was the son of a military conductor, who studied music at the Prague Conservatory and served for 12 years (same as his father) in the Austro- Hungarian army. During this time he gained extensive experience concerning the music of the peoples living in the monarchy. Beginning with The Merry Widow, he has achieved many great successes with his works, and has become one of the most appreciated operetta composers in Europe. He became acquainted with Giacomo Puccini, the genius of the 20th century Italian opera, who in one of his letters, expressed his appreciation for him: If Lehár had dedicated his life to the operatic genre, he would have been a serious contender of his. The Merry Widow - the operetta that was one of Lehár's greatest successes, features a large number of singing roles, of which five are female: four sopranos and a mezzo-soprano. Among them, the prima donna, Hanna Glavary - the young, rich and very beautiful widow -, stands out. At the world premiere of the piece that took place at the Theater an der Wien on December 30, 1805 this glamorous character was successfully portrayed Mizzi Günther, who, together with her partner, Louis Treumann as the leading man, managed to convince an initially skeptical audience that Lehár's operetta is a work that deserves to be seen and heard. Later, the work was successful produces on several European stages, and numerous recordings of the operetta were made, featuring famous prima donne, such as: Elisabeth Schwarzkopf (1953 and 1963), Cheryl Studer (1994), Pamela Coburn (1997) and Margarita de Arellano (2004). The Count of Luxembourg - is another successful work of the composer, which has been labeled by the critics of the time as an “erotic operetta”. Not by accident, for the female protagonist, Angèle, a Parisian prima donna is a particularly beautiful woman, with the entire plot revolving around her character. From a vocal point of view, the role has no other competition, it is joined only a supporting role sung by a leggiero soprano (soubrette), and a mezzo-soprano (in some casts sung by an alto) in a character role. At the world premiere of the work, which took place on November 12, 1909 at Theater an der Wien, the role of the prima donna was played by Annie von Ligety. This operetta has also endured the test of time and still feature today in the repertoire of musical theaters, and has been recorded by leading performers, such as: Zsuzsa Petress (1964), Lucia Popp (1968), Gesa Hoppe (2005) and Juliane Banse (2005). Gypsy Love – the vagueness of the plot of the operetta mirrors the clarity of the relationship between two main female protagonists. The young Zorica is the prima donna of the work, and she is endowed with a much
107 EVA-ELENA JORDAN more serious musical score than one can find in most operettas. The portrayal of the role, which includes several dramatic moments, calls for a stronger, more powerful voice than that of a lyrical soprano, hence, it is a prima donna role that requires a spinto soprano. At the same time, for the role of grande dame a much lighter type of music had been written, one that can also be sung by a lyrical soprano. Consequently, we can observe, that in the works of the great operetta composers, the use of vocal types designed for the main female roles can be reversed. At the world premiere of the work, which took place on January 8, 1910 at the Carltheater in Vienna, the prima donna role (Zorica) was performed by Grete Holm, the star of Theater an der Wien, while Mizzie Zwerenz, the audience favorite portrayed the role of the grande dame (Ilona). Since this work is a most beloved piece within the operetta repertoire, it has endured over time, as it still present today in its different forms. Famous recordings of the work feature distinguished performers, such as: Esther Rethy (1950), Erzsébet Házy (1965), and Johanna Stojkovic - Dagmar Schellenberger) (2003).6 The Land of Smiles - in this exotic themed operetta, the character of Lisa, the prima donna, is a classic lyrical soprano role, and its luster being dimmed by Mi, the soubrette role, who acts as the protector of the main heroine. Lisa's role, as well as that of the leading man, Sou-Chong, need vocal and musical skills close to those required for serious operatic roles. Although we have no data concerning the cast of the work’s world premiere that took place on 10 October, 1929 at the Metropol-Theater in Berlin, we know who the protagonists of the first cinematic version of the operetta were: for the 1930 adaptation, the main roles were portrayed by Mary Loseff and Richard Tauber, while for the 1952 version Martha Eggert and Jan Kiepura – a star singing couple - took on the roles. In the first Hungarian recordings of the piece, Lisa's role was sung by Júlia Osváth and Erzsébet Házy. Other notable recordings were made by artists, such as: Anneliese Rothenberger (1967), Valerie Goodall (1967) and Birgit Pitsch-Sarata (1973).7 Giuditta - if in the case of The Land of Smiles the main roles require voices that are close or similar to those used in operas, in this case, the roles of Giuditta and Octavio can be portrayed only by artists that have solid opera singing skills. Even the secondary pair of the roles, Pierrino and Anita, may be too difficuly for most operetta singers. Concerning the cast of the world premiere of the work, we know that it took place on January 20, 1934 at the Staatsoper in Vienna, and that Octavio's role was played by Lehár's
6 Németh, Amadé, A Magyar operett története (The History of the Hungarian Operetta), Anno Kiadó, 2002, p. 47-48. 7 Gál, György Sándor, Operettek könyve (The Book of Operettas), Zeneműkiadó, Budapesta, 1976, p. 424-425.
108 THE SOPRANO VOICE TYPE AND ITS IMPORTANCE WITHIN THE OPERETTA GENRE favorite tenor, Richard Tauber. At the Budapest premiere that occurred in April of the same year, the composer was the one who also conducted the work, while the cast was made up of Rózsi Walter and László Szűcs. Subsequently, several recordings featuring famous artists were made: Jarmia Ksirova (1944), Edda Moser (1990) and Natalia Ushakova (2002).8
Albert Szirmai (1880-1967) – He has been preparing for a career as a musician since his early childhood; at the Budapest Academy of Music he has had as colleagues Zoltán Kodály and Leó Weiner. After the success brought on by his first works, he became friends with the writer Andor Gábor, with whom he conceived the most famous operetta of his oeuvre, Mickey Magnate. Ten years later, Szirmai emigrates to New York, where he becomes one of the most prominent figures of American music. Magnate Miska - is a hilarious musical comedy, in which the title character is part of the comedy duo Miska and Marcsa. The real protagonists are Countess Rolla and her love interest of modest origin, Baracs. Rolla is a prima donna, with a score composed for a lyric-leggiero soprano, while Baracs is also a leggiero tenor. Other roles are: a soubrette (Marcsa), three buffo tenors (Miska, Pixi and Mixi) and a buffo bass-bariton (count Korláth). At the world premiere of the piece, which took place on February 12, 1916, at Királyszínház in Budapest, the role of the prima donna was portrayed by the highly esteemed Juci Lábass. Nonetheless, according to the music critics of the time, what mad the production a resounding success was the comical couple Miska and Marcsa, portrayed by two starts of the stage in that period, namely Márton Rátkai and Sári Fedák.9
Imre Kálmán (1882-1953) is one of the greatest operetta composers of the early 20th century. His life journey started in the house of a merchant from the small Hungarian town of Siófok, and continued through Budapest, Wiena, Bad Ischl, New York and Hollywood, from where, towards the end of his life, he triumphantly and gloriously returned to Europe. He was a good friend of Béla Bartók, Viktor Jacobi, Albert Szirmai, Jenő Ormándy and the writer Ferenc Molnár. He died in Paris in 1953, and he was buried in Vienna, in the vicinity of Beethoven, Brahms and Mozart.
8 Winkler, Gábor, Operett – Szubjektív kalauz egy varázslatos világban (The Operetta – A Subjective Guide into a Magical World), Tudomány Kiadó, Budapesta, 2013, p. 759. 9 Gál, György Sándor, op.cit., pp. 309-310.
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Die Csárdásfürstin - as one of the greatest successes of the composer, the work features a classic dichotomy between the prima donna and grande dame. Sylva is a leading role, whose score is not particularly difficult for a lyrical soprano, while the grande dame role, Anhilte, is rather a speaking part, having only two songs to sing for the spinto soprano – one at the end of act one, while the other, near the end of the operetta. The grande dame facet of the role is given by Anhilte’s dominant personality. What we know of the world premiere of the work – which took place on November 17, 1915, at the Johann Strauss-Theater in Vienna – is that the role of the leading man was played by the darling of operetta audiences of the time, Josef Königh. At the Budapest premiere that took place the following year, however, the role of the prima donna was entrusted to Emmi B. Kosáry, while Paula Bors sang the role of the grande dame. Seeing that it was one of the most successful operettas of the composer, there were many recordings made subsequently, featuring illustrious representatives of the musical theatre: Marika Németh - Hanna Honthy (1963), Erzsébet Házy (1968), Anneliese Rothenberg (1971) and Mónika Fischl - Zsuzsa Kovács (2005).10 Die Bajadere - the main female character of this operetta is Odette, a renowned Parisian actress who plays the role of the prima donna in the play “Die Bajadere” (play within a play). This role is mainly portrayed by lyrical coloratura sopranos, because in the first part of the work, she sings an aria written for a high register, with small coloratura ornaments, its range reaching C6, followed by Kálmán’s hallmark of difficult duet and ensemble finales. This work also features the two soprano soubrettes, Marietta and Simone, who enrich the plot with humorous scenes and highly expressive dance numbers. At the Budapest premiere of the operetta, which took place on December 10, 1922 at Király Színház, a great rivalry emerged between star Sári Fedák, the lead female protagonist and a younger Hanna Honthy, portraying Marietta. In the second half of the century, as well as after 2000, several recordings of the operetta were made, featuring great artists: Maria König (1964) and Erika Miklósa (2009).11 Countess Maritza – Maritza herself is the prima donna in this operetta, having a rich score, requiring a high level of vocal prowess. It is a complex role filled with dramatic moments, the melodic lines of the arias and the duets are highly sensitive and expressive. The role is usually sung by spinto or dramatic sopranos with a vast stage experience. Since there are a great variety of emotional states within the role, the artist must also possess an appropriate amount of life experience. At the Budapest premiere of the work,
10 Gänzl, Kurt, The Encyclopedia of the Musical Theatre, Schirmer Books, 1994. 11 Brockhaus Riemann Zenei Lexikon (Brockhaus Riemann Music Lexicon), Budapesta, 1985, vol. II., p. 260.
110 THE SOPRANO VOICE TYPE AND ITS IMPORTANCE WITHIN THE OPERETTA GENRE
on October 18, 1924, Maritza's role was played by Juci Lábass. After more than four decades following its Budapest premiere, recordings of the work began to appear by valuable performers: Marika Németh (1965), Anneliese Rothenberger (1971) and Katalin Pitti (1994).12 Die Zirkusprinzessin - in this case we have a prima donna, who would seem to comprise all the features of the two leading female roles: she is a lyrical-spinto soprano, which has a very melodic, pleasant score, spliced with more dramatic sequences as well. Her way of being stems from the very condition of the character: she is a widowed princess, a member of high society, but is still young and in love with a man of similarly noble origin, and who - as a punishment for his love - becomes a circus artist. The drama of the two is expressed in Kálmán's music with a high level of plasticity, Fedja (aka Mister X), also having dramatic moments himself. Considering that Fedora is a heroine who secretly experiences the greatest love of her life in secret, her role must be portrayed in a more reserved manner, playing her in a less open way than other prima donne, such as Sylva or Maritza. The world premiere of the operetta at Theater an der Wien on 26 March 1926 was a resounding success, followed by more than 300 performances of its kind. In less than six months, the Budapest premiere of the piece followed, starring Juci Lábass as Fedora and Tibor Halmay in the role of Mister X. Over half a century later, a recording of the operetta was made with Erzsébet Házy, and another one with Zsuzsa Kalocsai, in 1996.13
Pál Ábrahám (1892-1960) - was one of the most famous and appreciated Hungarian operetta composers in the interwar period. He was a prodigy, composing a mass at only 8 years of age. At age 17, he already was a student at the Academy of Music in Budapest, but, due to his insistent father, he also enrolled at the Academy of Commerce, attending his music classes in secret. After earning both of his degrees, he worked as a stock broker until 1927. That year he switched to the world of music, becoming a conductor and operetta composer. His first success came in 1930, when he has already been living in Berlin. The librettos and lyrics written for his operettas entitled Victoria and Her Hussar, The Flower of Hawaii and Ball at the Savoy were written by Alfred Grünwald and Fritz Löhner-Breda. Due to the unfavorable political climate, he emigrates to America, where he no longer receives the appreciation he deserved.
12 Németh, Amadé, op.cit., pp. 74-75. 13 Winkler, Gábor, op.cit., pp. 542-547.
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Victoria and Her Hussar - here we have a prima donna written for a lyrical soprano voice, with expressive melodies, well-known arias and duets. She is a highly sensitive character, who struggles with the love of two men, as she has to conceal her feelings. The leading man of the operetta is a diametrically opposed character, who expresses his feelings with the utmost sincerity. Also featured in the work, are two soubrette-tenor buffo pairs, characters that provide the comedic moments of the operetta, and without whom we would be surely watching a true melodrama. Nevertheless, the character of Victoria remains the play’s focus point, with her the role she plays in moving along the narrative, and by way of her contradictory feelings, like sadness, honest episodes revealing her inner struggles, or that of her happiness for the final outcome. The world premiere of the operetta took place in Budapest on February 21, 1930 at Király Színház, to great public success. The role of the prima donna was portrayed by Juci Lábass. After two decades, the first recordings emerge, with Gitta Lind (1951), Margit Schramm (1965) and later on with Zsuzsa Kalocsai (1992).14 Ball at the Savoy – this is the story that showcases, perhaps in the most telling way, the parallel between the prima donna Madeleine and her counterpart, La Tangolita, who is a true grande dame. Actually, we are talking about two parallel worlds: on the one hand, we have Countess Madeleine, a young woman devoted to her family, caught in the whirl of a game of apparent infidelity and jealousy, and on the other hand, her counterpoint, La Tangolita, a feminine argentine dancer, a mature woman, who is adored by men. Their vocal qualities are distinguished by their characters and by what they express: Madeleine's score is written for a standard lyrical soprano and that of Tangolita for a lyrical soprano with coloratura variations. Madeleine's melodic lines are characterized by cursive legatos and are constructed according to the patterns of hit songs from the 1920s and 1930s. The appearance of La Tangolita brings a new and effervescent musical style, by introducing a rhythm inspired by the Argentine tango, with pulsating melodies and an atmosphere much different from that which was before. She shocks with her way of being, and defines her role as a grande dame through the conflict she creates. The operetta was first presented at the Metropol Theater in Berlin on 23 December 1932, the role Madeleine being portrayed by Gitta Alpár, while La Tangolita was played by Trude Berliner. Later, one of the best versions of Madeleine was portrayed by Rózsi Bársony.15
14 http://www.operetten-lexikon.info/?menu=229&lang=1, https://onlinemerker.com/giessen-viktoria-und-ihr-husar-von-paul-abraham-premiere 15 Winkler, Gábor, op.cit., p. 65-70.
112 THE SOPRANO VOICE TYPE AND ITS IMPORTANCE WITHIN THE OPERETTA GENRE
In conclusion, we can say that the soprano voice type plays a particularly important role in the operettas of Hungarian composers, since all the main female roles - whether a prima donna or a grande dame - are written for this voice type; with small variations from the lyrical soprano (the most commonly used type) through the spinto soprano, and ending with the dramatic spinto. After reviewing the roles of prima donna and grande dame in the works of the most important operetta composers of Hungarian origin, it becomes clear that the performance of these scores requires a highly skilled vocal training and vocal technique, as well as a very clear diction and an astute capacity from the part of the singers to inhabit their characters and portray them genuinely through their often dramatic arc. Reviewing these operettas’ history of world premieres, as well as the subsequent recordings made, we can say that - apart from some esteemed exceptions (Sári Fedák, Hanna Honthy, Elisabeth Schwarzkopf and Erika Miklósa) - the main roles of these operettas were portrayed by the artists who have molded their technique and their skills to the genre, which may be out of reach for other artists who have made a name for themselves in the rather more “serious” operatic genre. Considering these aspects, we can say that for the high-level interpretation of operetta roles and for capturing the attention of the public, a thorough and special training of young talents should be required, alongside a relatively long and masterfully guided practical training within the genre, which for a long time was considered to be lesser as compared to others.
Translated from Romanian by Juliánna Köpeczi
REFERENCES
***, Brockhaus Riemann Musiklexikon, Zeneműkiadó, Budapest, 1983-1985. ***, Dictionnaire de la musique (Marc Vignal), Larousse, Paris,1993. ***, Dicționar de termeni muzicali (Dictionary of Musical Terms), Editura Științifică și Enciclopedică, București, 1984, ed. a II-a: Editura Enciclopedică, București, 2008. ***, Larousse Dicționar de mari muzicieni (Larousse Dictionary of Great Musicians), Univers Enciclopedic, Bucuresti, 2000. ***, The New Grove Dictionary of Music & Musicians, Macmillian Publishers Limited, London, 2001. Gál György Sándor, Operettek könyve (The Book of Operettas), Zeneműkiadó, Budapesta, 1976. Gänzl, Kurt, The Encyclopedia of the Musical Theatre, Schirmer Books, 1994.
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Moisescu, Titus – Păun Miltiade, Opereta – ghid (The Operetta – A Guide), Editura Muzicală a Uniunii Compozitorilor din RSR, București, 1969. Németh, Amadé, A Magyar operett története (The History of Hungarian Operettas), Anno Kiadó, 2002. Winkler Gábor, Operett – Szubjektív kalauz egy varázslatos világban (The Operetta – A Subjective Guide into a Magical World), Tudomány Kiadó, Budapesta, 2013.
Web Resources
Dimofte Georgiana, Opera și opereta, asemănări și deosebiri (Opera and Operetta – Similarities and Differences), https://www.scribd.com/doc/285927143/Opereta-Si-Opereta-asemanari-si- deosebiri, 2015 https://onlinemerker.com/giessen-viktoria-und-ihr-husar-von-paul-abraham- premiere
114 STUDIA UBB MUSICA, LXIII, 2, 2018 (p. 115 – 132) (RECOMMENDED CITATION) DOI:10.24193/subbmusica.2018.2.10
OPERETTA AS A GENRE FROM ITS BEGINNINGS TO ITS FAMOUS HUNGARIAN REPRESENTATIVES
EVA-ELENA JORDAN 1
SUMMARY. This work comprises three uneven parts. In the first part we have attempted to offer an abbreviated history of the operetta genre, from the beginning of the 17th century to its Hungarian composers at the end of the 19th and the beginning of the 20th centuries. Instead of an exhaustive historical presentation, we focused on pursuing a line of argumentation that would explain the emergence of the Hungarian composers from Budapest and Vienna, whose operettas successfully entertain audiences until this day. In the second part, we reviewed the specific topics approached by the Hungarian operetta composers, exemplifying these by briefly presenting the contents of the 14 operettas that we will analyze during our doctoral research. In the third part we compared the genres of opera and operetta, in terms of their elements. We considered this to be necessary in order to be able to demonstrate the specific features of the operetta genre and also emphasize the fact that they are very elaborate works created by talented and well-trained composers, and their staging required just as much talent, work and dedication throughout history, as their great operatic counterparts.
Keywords: operetta, prima donna, grande dame, musical, themes
1. The Operetta - The History of a Supposedly Minor Musical Genre
1.1. The Origins of the Genre Undoubtedly, the roots of the operetta genre extend back to the middle of the 17th century, when the musical stage work of Antonio Berti entitled “Pazzo amor” was defined as an “operetta”.2 Prior to the middle of
1 PhD Student within the “Gheorghe Dima” Academy of Music, Cluj-Napoca, Soloist at the Hungarian Opera of Cluj, and associate faculty member at Babeş-Bolyai University, Faculty of Reformed Theology. Contact her at [email protected]. 2 Brockhaus Riemann Zenei Lexikon (Brockhaus Riemann Music Lexicon), Budapest, 1985, vol. III., pp. 29-31.
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the 18th century, around 30 stage works under that name were identified; they appeared generally in the German princely courts. After 1730, the term operetta was used to describe German language adaptations of opera buffa works, and of Italian intermezzos or for the German translations of vaudeville pieces and French opéra comique works. The term was also applied during this period to the German works pertaining to the genre of singspiel. A skillful composer of such plays was Christian Gottlob Neefe, the distinguished and demanding master of the young Ludwig van Beethoven (Amors Gukkasten 1772). His other contemporaries have created a series of parodies of mythological themes (C.D. Dittersdorf, F. Kauer, W. Müller). Other heralds of the early operetta were the parodies written based on the “opera seria” composed at that time, one of the main targets being Meyerbeer, whose Robert le diable was the basis for many comical interpretations of the work, such as Robert der Wau Wau by Scutta (possible pseudonym), or Robert der Teuxel by A. Müller. A similar process took place in France, where, from the initial genres of vaudeville and opéra comique, A. Piron introduced “les persiflages des dieux” in the theatre, and Alain René Lesage did the same with operatic parodies. However, the main pioneer of the operetta genre was Hervé (Louis Auguste Florimond Ronger by his own name), with his comical parodies, which he initially called musiquette (Les chevaliers de la Table Rondes 1886, Chilpéric 1868, Le petit Faust 1869).3 He was the forerunner of the first great operetta composer, Jacques Offenbach that has entered music history with his three act opera buffas and single-act buffoneries. Born in the family of a Jewish cantor from Cologne, he moved to Paris at a young age, having been noticed for his virtuoso cello performances. His first attempts to compose and present comic operas were not received with sympathy by the Comic Opera House in Paris, therefore, he founded his own theatre, Les Buffes Parisiens. Here, he managed to successfully present an impressive number of works: opera buffas, and single-act operettas (over 60), comic operas and two, three, four or five act operettas (around 50). His best known works are Orpheus in the Underworld (1858) and La belle Hélène (1864). He finalized all of his librettos himself, intervening in order to create dramatic situations, thus aiding in the creation of a perfect harmony between text and music. Moreover, the great success of his works is also the result of his masterful couplets, as well as the fact that he included the most popular dances of the time – such as the cancan and the galoppe – in his operettas.
3 Winkler, Gábor, Operett – Szubjektív kalauz egy varázslatos világban (The Operetta – A Subjective Guide into a Magical World), Tudomány Kiadó, Budapest, 2013, pp. 25-28.
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1.2. The Classical Viennese Operetta 1.2.1. Based on Offenbach's example, the first of the great Viennese operetta composers, Franz von Suppé, created the work that will foretell the style reigning in Vienna and Budapest for the next half century. The piece was entitled Das Pensionat (1860), which brought from the beginning that sweet and sentimental, unmistakable characteristic of the old Viennese theaters. Born in the Dalmatian city of Split in 1819, he studied flute, musical composition and law at Cremona and Padua. In 1835, after his father's death, he moved to Vienna and studied medicine and music at the Friends of Music Conservatory. At the urging of Franz Pokorny, the head of the Josephstadt theater, he begins his long and prodigious career as a composer, during which he wrote 28 operettas and more than 200 farces, vaudevilles, ballets and other stage works. His most important works (of the 37 written for stage) are: The Beautiful Galathea (1865), Fatinitza (1876) and Boccaccio (1879). Another Viennese composer, a contemporary of Suppé and just as prolific was Carl Millöcker, who created more than 20 operettas, of which the most successful were Der Bettelstudent (1882) and Gasparoni (1884). After such a preamble, it was time for perhaps the most important operetta composer in history, namely, Johann Strauss II.
1.2.2. The “King of the Waltz”, as he was called even during his lifetime, Strauss was part of the family of musicians, composers and conductors, who had a decisive role in shaping the style, a high quality leisurely cultural lifestyle that characterized Vienna at the end of the 19th century and the beginning of the 20th century. Born in 1825 in the family of a famous and beloved Viennese composer and conductor, who wanted to guide his son towards a “more serious” profession, young Strauss studied music in secret, and in 1844 founded his first orchestra, thus entering into a conflict with his father. After his father’s death in 1849, Strauss joined the two orchestras, thus shortly becoming the most popular composer and conductor in Vienna. His music promoted the spirit of the Austrian popular dance according to a specifically Viennese formula, combining it with a cheerfully light tone, and a natural arrangement, relatively simple, borrowing from the folk music of the time. He was the creator of the so-called dancing operettas, where dance music was the element that generated the entire plot of the piece. His operettas were not as many as Suppé’s, or that of Millöcker, however, due to his composing abilities and his extraordinary melodic flare Johann Strauss II. was able to create undisputed masterpieces of the genre: The Bat (Die Fledermaus 1874), A Night in Venice ( Eine Nacht in Venedig 1883) and The Gypsy Baron (Der Zigeunerbaron 1885). The Bat
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is considered to be the most successful operetta of all time, while until the occurrence of the Hungarian operetta, The Gypsy Baron (which is a stage adaptation based on one of Mór Jókai’s novels) was almost viewed as a work with national importance.4 This proves that the proximity and partial merging between the Viennese cultural life and the culture of Budapest was a suitable and fertile ground for the appearance of a long line of composers of Hungarian operettas, who, up until the middle of the 20th century, have created countless works of musical theater drawing on both Hungarian and Viennese culture.
1.3. The Great Triad of Hungarian Operetta Composers Reviewing the literature on the topic, we found that there was a long line of Hungarian operetta composers, who have created a long list of works for musical theater. Even before the occurrence of the greatest Hungarian composers of the genre, there are no fewer than 11 names of composers who created such works, according to the distinguished historian of the Hungarian operetta, Amadé Németh (1922-2001): József Konti, Károly Huber, Verő György, Károly Czobor, Izsó Barna, Jenő Sztojanovits, Béla Hegyi, Lajos Serly, Béla Szabados, Elek Erkel, Ferenc Puks. They have collectively created over 30 operettas, which were more or less successful with the audiences of the time, but which have created a climate conducive to the emergence of the genre’s “heavyweights”, who – through their work - have conquered both the Viennese “high society”, as well as audiences around the globe.5 1.3.1. Next we will focus on the figure of the brilliant composer Ferenc Lehár, who conquered the high quality music connoisseurs of Vienna and Budapest alike. However, since our segment deals with the history of the genre of operetta, we need to mention also another “triad” of the Hungarian operetta composers, who ushered in the indisputable streak of successes of Hungarian composers, but who received their musical education and oriented their work toward Viennese culture. The first one is Jenő Huszka, a composer who, in an exceptional manner, held the world premiere of his first operetta not in Vienna, but in Budapest, in 1902. We are referring to Prince Bob, performed no less than 100 times in its first year, while some of the songs included in the score became beloved hits that are cherished to this day. The longevous composer Jenő Huszka wrote a total of 15 operettas (the most renowned of which was Gül baba, composed in 1905), the last one having had its world premiere in 1954. Shortly after his first successes,
4 Németh, Amadé, A Magyar operett története, Anno Kiadó, 2002, pp. 13-14. 5 Németh, Amadé, op.cit., pp. 19-28.
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Ferenc Lehár, the son of a well-known military orchestra conductor, appears on the stages of Budapest and Vienna. Born in Komárom in 1870, Lehár became familiar with music from an early age, completing his musical studies at the Prague Conservatory, later settling down in Vienna. He has composed an impressive number of 31 operettas, and began to present his works at about the same time as Huszka, however, his first real success came only in 1905, in Vienna, with The Merry Widow. His other notable creations in the genre of operetta are: The Count of Luxembourg (1909), Gypsy Love (1910), The Land of Smiles (1929) and Giuditta (1934). The third composer of the first wave of composers of Hungarian operettas was Pongrácz Kacsoh, a composer who is little known outside his linguistic territory, but who has marked the history of the genre with his János vitéz (John the Valiant) that was a huge success at its world premiere in Budapest in 1904, and was performed more than 600 times after its first showing, without interruption.6 1.3.2. Talking about Imre Kálmán in superlatives is a relatively easy and natural thing to do. However, looking at our data, we quickly realized that we must mention another pair of composers who complement his work, the two talented Albert Szirmai and Viktor Jacobi. The first of the three composers is Albert Szirmai, who has composed 10 operettas, of which Mickey the Magnate brought him true success and recognition, a piece that since its world premiere in 1916, has consistently stayed on the repertoire of musical theatres until today. The second composer, and the most important of the three, is Imre Kálmán, born in 1882 in Siófok, educated at the Academy of Music in Budapest (where he was a colleague of Zoltán Kodály), is the author of 18 operettas, of which four were responsible for his world-wide fame: Die Csárdásfürstin (1916), Die Bajadere (1921), Countess Maritza (1924) and Die Zirkusprinzessin (1926). These works are still part of the repertoire of musical theaters around the world. Die Csárdásfürstin was the basis of four, while the Countess Maritza of three cinematic versions of the operettas. The third of the group was Viktor Jacobi, a composer of 8 operettas, of which Szibill, first presented in 1914 in Budapest, ensured him a brilliant American career that was cut short by his untimely death (1921).7 1.3.3. The third important Hungarian operetta composer, Pál Ábrahám, was not alone in writing for musical theatre in Budapest and beyond, until the middle of the 20th century, he was joined by: Károly Stephanides, Zsigmond Vincze, Imre Farkas, Béla Zerkovitz, Mihály Nádor, Alfréd Markus, Dénes Buday, Mihály Erdélyi, Károly Komjáti, Mihály Krasznai, Károly De fries, Mihály Eisemann, Gyula Kiszely, Lajos Lajtai, Pál
6 Winkler, Gábor, op.cit., pp. 655-660. 7 Gál, György Sándor, Operettek könyve, Zeneműkiadó, Budapest, 1976, pp. 274-302.
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Gyöngy, Egon Kemény, Miklós Brodszky, Ferenc Farkas, Ottó Vincze, Rezső Kókai, Tibor Polgár, György Ránki, András Bágya, Endre Székely, Szabolcs Fényes, János Kerekes, Tamás Bródy, Jenő Horváth, György Behár, István Sárközy, Zdenko Tamássy, Amadé Németh and Júlia Hajdú. Therefore, together with Pál Ábrahám, we are talking about 34 composers who have created more than 250 operettas, thus enriching the lives of the ten musical theatres that have existed at the time in Budapest. We have chosen to emphasize the work of Pál Ábrahám, since two the six operettas he wrote, namely Victoria and Her Hussar (1931) and Ball at the Savoy (1933) are works that are present within musical theatre repertoires to this day, and their music is a glaring example of the new spirit that he brought into the genre, which eventually led to the creation of the style of contemporary musicals.8 1.3.4. In the three previous segments, I sought to place the three great operetta authors in the Hungarian musical context of the time, so we believe it to be superfluous to allocate further paragraphs for the presentation of the continuators of the musical stage tradition they initiated. However, I would like to recall an interesting fact that can strengthen our belief in the uniqueness of Viennese and Budapest musical practices and styles from the end of the 19th century and the beginning of the 20th century. I refer here to the classification made by the distinguished European and Hungarian operetta historian and analyst, Gábor Winkler, who in his monumental work, entitled The Operetta – A Subjective Guide into a Magical World (Tudomány Publishing, Budapest, 2013) unambiguously places Ferenc Lehár, Imre Kálmán and Pál Ábrahám in the context of Hungarian-Viennese opera. He does that based on several reasons: their musical education, compositional style, and the fact that most of their operettas had their world premieres in Vienna, and were sung in German. This standpoint is in contradiction with the position adopted by many music historians, who view the three great composers exclusively as the founders of Hungarian stage music. It is true that in their scores they also used elements specific to the Hungarian musical style of the second half of the 19th century (which included also the great Liszt), but by benefiting from a universal culture, they assimilated and synthesized everything that was the best (and the most successful) in French, German and Viennese music. On the other hand, no matter how determined and sustained the patriotic tendencies and efforts aimed at creating a truly Hungarian type of stage music were, no composer could neglect the preferences and expectations of the Budapest audiences, which was mostly formed by a fresh
8 Brockhaus Riemann Zenei Lexicon (Brockhaus Riemann Music Lexicon), Budapest, 1985, vol. I., p. 11.
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and prosperous bourgeoisie, who felt at home in Budapest, Vienna or Paris alike. This open perspective that characterized the “high society” of the Austro-Hungarian Monarchy, was the driving force that created the rich and unmistakable style of the Hungarian operetta. And the three composers presented in our analysis are the foremost representatives of this type of music.
1.4. Themes Specific to the Operetta Genre This particular aspect of the operetta itself requires a new review of the genre’s history since the specific themes of the genre occur during its development, is gradually changing, therefore, from its beginnings to its developed forms occurring in Vienna and Budapest, the changes seem radical. The first attempts of comedic works of musical theatre at the end of the 18th century and the first half of the 19th century were (mostly) parody replicas of operas written by classicist composers, therefore, they were based on mythological themes, that were approached in a comic manner, intended to ridicule a cultural ideology and viewpoint that were obsolete and had nothing to do with the reality of the time. (A prime example would be Le Petit Orphée by Prosper-Didier Deshayes, a parody of Gluck’s opera Orfeo ed Euridice, at whose 1792 premiere the term ‘operetta’ appeared on the hand-written posters, alongside other examples, such as Offenbach’s Orpheus in the Underworld and La belle Hélène (1858). Later on, along with the increasing popularity of the genre, its themes change, as composers begin to draw inspiration from the life of the social strata which make up the audiences of the genre, but without becoming realistic in the literal sense of the term. On the contrary, the stories that represent the bases of operetta librettos are more related to the ones born from the imagination of more or less simple people: love stories, in which protagonists come either from privileged social classes whose lifestyle and well-being are unattainable desires for most audiences, or from lower classes, but whose characters have extraordinary skills, and a life journey worthy of the heroes of such stories. These love stories are complemented by with pleasant, easy-to-remember melodies with a transparent but vibrant accompaniment, but the plot thread is built upon scenes composed of prose, which often contain comic situations, to the delight of operetta audiences. The plot itself is usually full of unexpected twists, as well as everyday intrigue, which usually has a happy ending for the main protagonists. Often these intrigues and comic situations also contain a slight dose of social criticism, approached, however, with indulgence and elegance.
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Jenő Huszka: Prince Bob - is a good example for what we referred to above. It focuses on the love story between a prince and the daughter of a small merchant, which occurs on the occasion of the prince’s incognito escapades. The social difference between the two, the injustices that are about to occur both in the royal palace and in the environment of ordinary people, remind us of the classic-romantic stories of the 19th century. And the happy outcome, in which justice is served, and the lovers get their happiness is reminiscent of the world of folk tales. However, the actual elements of the plot place the story in the historical period when the noble- dynastic sphere interferes with that of the bourgeois-citizenry of a modern world about to be born.9 Jenő Huszka: Gül baba – represents another theme, drawn from the world of fairy tales from the days of the Ottoman rule, however, it basically contains somewhat similar elements to the previous one: a love story blossoms between two youngsters belonging to radically different social groups, the injustices that await and the resolution of conflict by way of actions and circumstances borrowed from fairy tales. However, since we are referring to a plot that takes place in the 17th century, the elements of the entourage, and momentary situations are characteristic of a more archaic world, having rules that are more cruel, with twists and turns that may endanger the lives of the main protagonists.10 Ferenc Lehár: The Merry Widow - the first successful operetta of the composer has a theme that is strongly anchored in the social and political reality of the transition between the 19th and 20th centuries, containing a high degree of social and moral criticism. However, the imagining a small country in the Balkans, whose bankrupt economy can be saved through an advantageous marriage between a state official and a rich widow, catapults us once again into the world of stories where the great problems of both the individual and society can be resolved through love. The elements of the plot are as real as possible, but the essence of the conflict, the way of solving it, pertains to the realm of imagination. The slight political undertone of the story, namely, the allusion to that small Balkan country, has sparked diplomatic scandals, as some Montenegrin patriots have identified the small bankrupt state with their own homeland. The demonstrations and protests that ensued from their part in the end served to amplify the success of the work.11
9 Németh, Amadé, op.cit., pp. 30-32. 10 Winkler, Gábor, op.cit., pp. 395-398. 11 Gál, György Sándor, op.cit., pp. 413-414.
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Ferenc Lehár: The Count of Luxembourg - the theme of this operetta is related to that of that of The Merry Widow, since it also includes political innuendos, however, these have a lesser degree of immediate impact. The main protagonists are people belonging to different social classes, but are also not ordinary characters: we have a young man, who has inherited an illustrious title with no wealth attached to it, a highly appreciated and celebrated diva, and a high-ranking diplomat, who is in love. These are human connections, with many twists and turns, and the resolution of the conflict takes place on the level of personal feelings and aspirations. Therefore, the theme is a realistic one, but the plot and final outcome bear the candor stories characteristic for operettas: everything takes place in the realm of possibility, which cannot actually be attained in real life.12 Ferenc Lehár: Gypsy Love – the third highly successful operetta of the composer was originally recommended as a “romantic operetta” and its structural and stylistic features are related with those of the operatic genre. Its theme is an interesting mixture of romanticism, severing almost all ties to reality, and events placed in relatively distant areas from the Vienna- Budapest axis (somewhere in Transylvania), in which very different types of characters appear: Romanian boyars, Hungarian peasants, nomadic Gypsies. The basic conflict is generated by the love between boyar’s daughter and a Roma violinist, who is the star of his time, a character specific to the cultural life of Budapest in the second half of the 19th century. This piece was and is known in two quite different variants. In the original version, both the heroine and the young man with whom she marries come from Romanian boyar families, and the female character who portrays the role of the grande dame and plays an essential role in solving the conflict, is a wealthy, divorced lady, belonging to the noble Hungarian class from the region of Transylvania. Given the particular popularity of the work’s music, in the first decade of the third millennium, a more “Hungarianized” version of the original was made, in which the father of the heroine, Zorica, is called Dragojan (i.e. thus giving him an unclear identity), the young nobleman Ionel becomes Gábor Szatmary, i.e. a Hungarian landowner, and the grande dame character, Ilona, is an actress, a prima donna of a Budapest theater, and she is also in love with the gypsy violinist Józsi. If in the original version the whole conflict takes place in the middle part of the work, in Zorica’s dream, in the modernized version everything is truly happening then and there, and the happy ending is followed by Ilona’s melodramatic aria.13
12 Brockhaus Riemann Zenei Lexikon (Brockhaus Riemann Music Lexicon), Budapest, 1985, vol. II., p. 403. 13 Winkler, Gábor, op.cit., pp. 690-694.
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Ferenc Lehár: The Land of Smiles - the theme of this piece is one that is characteristis to the beginning of the 20th century, when - following the development of trade relations with the countries of the Far East - the attention of Europeans turned to the culture, customs and traditions of that part of the world. The story of the operetta presents the encounter between two youths belonging to two extremely different worlds: a young noble girl from Vienna, and a diplomat from the faraway country of China. Their love and happiness seem to have no boundaries as long as they are in Vienna. But when the young diplomat is called home to receive the highest state distinction, the yellow robe, insurmountable obstacles concerning the Chinese culture and customs arise: Sou-Chong is forced to marry four young Chinese women from notable families. Since the situation and the general atmosphere is causing her pain and suffering, Lisa feels the need to return home to Vienna. After her husband's refusal to make that happen, she chooses to go alone, and is helped by a young Austro-Hungarian diplomat. Sou-Chong uncovers their plan, and after lashing out in anger and threatening them, he eventually calm down and accepts Lisa's departure. The ending, thus, is not a happy, but rather a sad one. Moreover, the style the work and the way it was created closely resembles the creation of an opera. The arias written for the two main protagonists, Lisa and Sou-Chong, have a degree of difficulty that is close to that of the opera segments.14 Ferenc Lehár: Giuditta - is perhaps Lehár's most realistically themed work. All the elements – from the situations presented, to the love connections and the situations arising for the heroes and heroines of the work are as real as possible. Both Giuditta and Octavio, as well as Anita and Pierrino are looking for happiness and their way to live a decent life. But, as is often the case in life, the twists and turns of fate make everything much more complicated than they are in fairytales. The ending of the plot is far from being a happy one. The author wanted on this occasion to actually create an opera. Perhaps this was the reason why he chose such a realistic libretto. Nonetheless, although Giuditta is structured in scenes, it includes arias that require the skills of opera singers. Its world premiere took place at the Vienna Staatsoper, but since the critics of the time did not classify it as an opera, over time, it was assimilated into the genre of operetta.15 Albert Szirmai: Mickey the Magnate - is a comedy characteristic for the late 19th and early 20th centuries. Here we can already observe a clear tendency to show a crooked mirror to an passé aristocratic world, since almost all of the main characters of the work come from outside of the nobility: the
14 Winkler, Gábor, op.cit., pp. 745-749. 15 Németh, Amadé, op.cit., pp. 58-60.
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engineer Baracs, who, although comes from a modest family, is a successful inventor, who appreciated throughout Europe; the stableman Miska is the healthy and robust son of the people, who playfully carries out the farce prepared by Baracs for the members of the high society; Marcsa, the modest maid, who, through her healthy sensible character, solves the main conflict of the work; and Rolla, the young countess who, being abhorred by the morals of her own world, chooses the path toward a freer life, in which true human sentiments and qualities prevail. However, in order for the comedic aspect of the operetta to work, there are also a lot of caricatures of the people who populate that world of privilege, which had almost completely declined at the turn of the 19th and 20th centuries. Moreover, the reconciliation at the end of the work illustrates the compromise that existed at the time of the operetta’s creation between an outdated social order and a new one, built upon the reality of life at the beginning of a new century.16 Imre Kálmán: Die Csárdásfürstin – the plot of the operetta is based on the conflict between the world of show-business and entertainment and that of the aristocracy from a century ago. The latter is as rigid and traditional as in the previous centuries, but it can be pierced through the power of love, an element that is reminiscent of fairytales. The two main female characters come from the world of show-business, while the men whose attention they seek come from the aristocratic world. The main male protagonist is an Austrian prince, with close ties to the royal court, an aristocrat who, in his youth, has fallen in love with a star of the luxury entertainment establishment, Anhilte, and - opposing the habits and customs of his class – and married her. The actress who became a princess is a typical example of the “grande dame” character, who - through her position and attitude - generates much of the conflicts that make up the plot of the operetta. The other main female protagonist, Sylva, is almost like a replica of a young Anhilte, who is in a relationship with the son of the former diva, who is now a princess. With all the resistance put up by the mother and after a long series of comic and melodramatic twists, history repeats itself a generation later, and the end is a happy and joyous one.17 Imre Kálmán: Die Bajadere - shortly after the success of Die Csárdásfürstin, the composer asked his Viennese librettists for a text about the exotic world of the Orient. The main protagonist of the work is Prince Radjani, the heir to the throne of the Lahore kingdom, part of remote Indian. He escapes from his country which is under British protectorate, and leads a luxurious life in Paris. After many love affairs, he falls in love with a beautiful
16 Gál, György Sándor, op.cit., pp. 309-310. 17 Gänzl, Kurt, The Encyclopedia of the Musical Theatre, Schirmer Books, 1994.
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and talented actress, who plays the main character of an exotic operetta called “Die Bajadere”. The young woman successfully withstands Radjani's efforts to seduce her, while he, accustomed to easy conquests, resorts to his powers of hypnosis. After realizing that she was determined to sign a marriage commitment under hypnosis, Odette rejects the prince, and seemingly, their paths part ways. Still, after a lot of plot twists and help from their friends, they both realize that they are meant for each other and they join lives. This story illustrates once more the attraction that the audience of the early 20th century had to the characters and situations generated by the interference of the world and the European culture to that of the Far East. Conflicts and their resolution have, however, quite a “native” feel to them, they have nothing out of the ordinary. The plot is therefore a mixture of a story, a fairytale, and elements pertaining to realism. Due to the wonderful music, Die Bajadere was successful in both Vienna and Budapest, but after a few years its disappeared inexplicably from the repertoire of Hungarian musical theaters and was “rediscovered” only after eight decades, in 2009 when he was presented again, in a version adapted for the audiences of the 21st century.18 Imre Kálmán: Countess Maritza - the theme of this operetta represents an interesting mixture of romanticism and realism: the main protagonist is a financially bankrupt Hungarian count, who, in order to provide his sister with an acceptable dowry, gets a job working incognito for a rich and still single countess named Maritza. In order to escape those only seeking her fortune, She, in turn, launches a fake rumor saying that she is engaged to a person, the name of whom she borrowed from the operetta The Gypsy Baron. At first, the Countess is cold and act with an air of superiority toward her employee, but his fairness and fine character determines her get closer, and she eventually falls in love with him. Count Tassilo has similar feelings toward the Countess. Meanwhile, the plot thickens as some unexpected twists complicate matters further: all of a sudden a young man appears, whose name is coincidentally the same as that of the person she claimed to be engaged to, and he want to meet his “fiancé”, about whom he read numerous articles in the tabloids of the time. However, instead of the countess, he ends up falling in love with the main protagonist’s sister. After an unfortunate incident, Countess Maritza loses the trust she had in Count Tassilo, considering that he is also only after her money. Liza, the count's sister, tries in vain to clarify the situation, for the two seem to have fallen out for good. Eventually, the Count’s aunt, Princess Bozena, intervenes to redeem all the properties of Tassilo, reinstating him in his rights,
18 Brockhaus Riemann Zenei Lexikon (Brockhaus Riemann Music Lexicon), Budapest, 1985, vol. II., p. 260.
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and redressing his material and social situation. The ending is a happy one, since Maritza is finally convinced that her love is a man of integrity, while Tassilo's sister, Liza also finds happiness in the arms of the false “fiancé”, Jupan.19 Imre Kálmán: The Circus Princess - the story of this operetta takes us to the world of Russian aristocracy (it is worth noting, that the libretto and music were created in 1925-1926, when the Tsarist regime had already been eradicated), and concerns two young people, who due to the feelings they have for each other are subject to great trials and suffering. Fedja, the young aristocrat, whom a brilliant military career awaits, falls in love with Fedora, the fiancé of his wealthy and influential uncle, who in turn removes him from the army. Now poor and excluded from the world of privilege, he makes a living as a circus acrobat, and quickly becomes the idol of the public under the name of Mister X. Fedora marries his uncle, Prince Palinsky, but after a while she is widowed. Moreover, she also becomes an admirer of the courageous Mister X, who appears each evening in the arena of the circus, wearing a mask. She feels attracted by the force that emanates from this mysterious character. Meanwhile, the young widow, the heiress of an immense wealth, is intensely courted by another elder prince, Sergius Wladimir. Initially, Fedora rejects both Mister X's compliments and Prince Wladimir’s attempts to conquer her. The latter wants to get revenge, and convinces Fedja-Mister X to conquer the widow and ask her for marriage under the pseudonym of Prince Korosov. Fedja accepts, is successful with his attempt, and after Fedora accepts him, Prince Wladimir reveals his farce. Fedora, after being assigned the nickname “The Circus Princess”, she reacts violently, and refuses Fedja, leaves with a friend to Budapest, while still planning to get engaged to Prince Wladimir. Fedja finds her here, and finally convinces her that she is not in love with Wladimir, but with him, who is actually a young man from a first-class aristocratic family. The story of this operetta is, therefore, a completely romantic one, full of twists and turns, deception, scheming, passions, and wishes to introduce the viewer into the world of aristocracy, which has always been inaccessible to mere mortals, and is even more inaccessible through the simple fact that it no longer exists.20 Pál Ábrahám: Victoria and Her Hussar - this operetta has been played for a long time in an abridged form, because in 1930, when it was first presented, the content of the first scene was disturbing to certain political interests. This first scene takes place in Siberia, in a prisoners of war camp, where captive militants are held in inhumane conditions, and are
19 Németh, Amadé, op.cit., pp. 74-75. 20 Winkler, Gábor, op.cit., pp. 542-547.
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gradually all exterminated, having been shot one by one. The main protagonist, the Hussar lieutenant Koltay had left his fiancée Countess Victoria at home, in Dorozsma. Following a happy event, he and his loyal friend, Jancsi, manage to escape, and arrive in Peking, where they take refuge at the United States embassy. For eight decades, the staging of most renditions began with the colourful and quasi-happy image of Peking. This approach made the bittersweet atmosphere that the composer actually wanted to express by way of his music disappear, and the overly sentimental and romantic story survived only thanks to the excellent songs, which quickly became hits, known by everyone. The two refugees benefit from the protection of the generous Ambassador Webster, also due to the fact that they are from the same country as his wife. To his shock and sadness, Koltay finds out that the ambassador’s wife is none other than her former fiancé, Victoria, who had vowed that she would wait for him to return from the war. Webster is relocated as a diplomat to Petersburg (notice how the city is no longer called St. Petersburg), and is followed by Victoria and the two refugees. Here, Koltay tries to win back his former fiancée, but Victoria - feeling indebted to Webster - decides to stay with her husband. In a moment of despair, Koltay surrenders to the Soviet officer, who already suspected him for having escaped from the Siberian camp. In the last scene, we return to the quiet little town of Dorozsma in Hungary, where life begins to return to normal after the war. This is where the main protagonists meet up again: Jancsi, Victoria, Webster, and by a miracle, hussar lieutenant Koltay, who had escaped execution through a fortunate trade of prisoner exchange. This scene is exactly the opposite of the first one of the Siberian hell, but is almost as bitter. The happy ending springs again from John Webster's generosity, for he releases his wife, Victoria, from their marriage. The two lovers are happy to be finally in each other’s arms. The bittersweet atmosphere, however, is still hovering in the air, because the horrors of the First World War have made their mark on everyone's lives.21 Pál Abrahám: Ball at the Savoy - Launched in Berlin in 1932, this operetta is written based on a story exclusively built on love, deceit, jealousy, romantic entanglements and happy reconciliations. The bliss felt by a young wealthy couple who just returned from their honey-moon by the man's commitment to his former mistress, the Argentinean dancer Tangolita. She forces him to meet her at the famous ball at the Paris Savoy. The young husband, under a fairly transparent pretext, goes to Paris with a friend, but his wife, Madeleine, gets suspicious, and follows him in secret. Arrived at the Savoy, she recognizes her husband in the company of Tangolita,
21 https://onlinemerker.com/giessen-viktoria-und-ihr-husar-von-paul-abraham-premiere
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and decides to get revenge. She accepts the timid advances of a young man named Célestin, as they sit in the neighbouring booth to that in which her husband, Aristide, is sitting with the Argentinean dancer. At the end of the party, Madeleine surprises her husband, and the divorce of the two seems imminent. After getting home, Aristide learns from Célestin that his wife has not deceived him and that she still loves him, therefore, the newlyweds can soon reconcile.22 In conclusion, we can state that operetta-specific themes can be extremely varied, from the world of fairytales, completely out of the realm of reality, to those anchored in the specific social environment of the late 19th and early 20th centuries, but whose characters are always out of the ordinary, either through their personal qualities and characteristics, or by their social rank. The situations and conflicts that arise through the course of the plot are meant to develop and nuance profoundly human traits, and to deliver to them (and the viewers) a life lesson, in a smiling and indulgent manner. The locations and venues where the scenes unfold, are chosen in such a way as to enable the director and the set and costume designer to create a stunning, attractive set, beautiful, elegant costumes, because the tales and music created by the librettist and composer can be more easily “sold” in such a “package” By reviewing the string of successful operettas created by Hungarian composers, we are witnessing the birth of a whole industry of quality entertainment, a precursor of contemporary show business.
1.5. Similarities and Differences between the Structure of Operas and Operettas. A Morphological Analysis. “Opera is a term referring to a form of the theater, often referred to as lyrical theater, in which the entire story takes place completely, or predominantly using music and singing. Opera uses many of the elements of the spoken or dramatic theater, such as script, costumes, sets, stage movement and interpretation. In spite of these similarities, the performers of operas must possess, first and foremost, distinct vocal qualities that give the musical genre its defining identity. Since the message of the work is transmitted mainly through music, to the necessary vocal qualities of the performers, other elements are added, such as an musical instrument ensemble for accompaniment, whose complexity can vary between a minimal ensemble, such as a trio, quartet or quintet, to a complete symphonic orchestra. At times, and especially for French opera, for most of its history, the operatic piece
22 Moisescu, Titus – Păun, Miltiade, Opereta – ghid, Editura Muzicală a Uniunii Compozitorilor din RSR, București, 1969, pp. 22-24.
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includes ample ballet scenes. [...] The composing elements of opera: overture, aria, ensembles (duets, trios, quartets, quintets, sextets), coral ensemble, ballet ensemble.”23 “Operetta is a musical-dramatic composition of large proportion, similar to opera, and derived from it, written based on a dramatic libretto with a delightful, often humorous tone, featuring artificial and often implausible situations, in which the couplets sung by the soloists and the choir alternate with spoken dialogue and dance numbers, all accompanied by the music played by an orchestra. [...] The composing elements of the operetta: the overture, the aria, ensembles (duets, trios, quartets, quintets, sextets), the coral ensemble, the ballet ensemble, plus spoken dialogues, often extending to the size of an entire scene.”24 Base on the above quoted dictionary definitions, we can see how similar the two genres of musical theatre, opera and operetta, truly are. The similarities are especially evident in the composing elements of the two genres, where we can see an almost 100% similarity rate. The differences, however, appear in the “essential parts”, that is in the themes, the modes of expression, and, above all, in the creator's intent. Hence the differences, both on the scale of the work’s entire structure, as well as within its musical material. In classical operas, everything is sung, even epic text fragments or dramatic dialogue, these moments being called recitatives, which do not require too much acting talent because it is music that determines its mode of expression. In operettas these texts are simply uttered as in a theatrical play, in a manner that requires also acting talent. Operatic overtures are longer, and contain a well-structured compression of the musical ideas that will be presented in the work. In the case of operettas, overtures are much shorter, and are a sort of “preview” of the hit songs that will delight audiences. Operatic arias are the most important fragments of the work, they define the character of the main protagonists, express their torments and the dramatic aspects of their experiences. On the other hand, the arias of operettas may have a similar function, but most of the times have a content that is almost exclusively focused on love, and have a much lighter, more relaxed character, and marked by a less intense dramatic tone. However, from the point of view of vocal technique, operetta arias may be as difficult
23 Dimofte, Georgiana, Opera și opereta, asemănări și deosebiri (Opera and Operetta – Similarities and Differences), https://www.scribd.com/doc/285927143/Opereta-Si-Opereta- asemanari-si-deosebiri, 2015 24 Dimofte, Georgiana, op.cit.
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as operatic ones, and soloists have the obligation to sing in a way that makes the text easily understood by the public. The latter requirement is important, as operettas - besides the fact that they are meant to become hits sung by fans - often contain in the direct and important references to the conflicting situations from which the plot derives. The solo ensembles of operas (duets, trios, quartets, quintets, sextets) are usually moments that express the dramatic interaction between characters. Apart from the love duets (some of which are profoundly dramatic), the ensembles express conflicting situations, and the musical writing strongly mirrors this aspect (contrasting melodic lines, often in a polyphonic approach, different lyrics for each character, which often are contrasting in terms of content). In the case of the soloist ensembles in operettas, however, the situation is very different. We also find love duets, which most of the times express unequivocally the attraction between the two. Trios and larger ensembles often have a humorous, relaxed content, focused on the intention of creating an entertaining atmosphere, with characters often also dancing. The choral ensemble of operas often plays a role that is reminiscent of the ancient tradition of dramaturgy, namely to tell that which cannot be viewed on stage or narrated by the characters in an objective manner, but also in accordance with the dramatic tension of action. Starting with the romantic period, the choral ensemble in operas highlights the presence and attitudes of the people, the community, towards the heroes’ actions, and the situations that arise. These traits become even more obvious with the composers of verism, and in the era of modernism, the classical functions of the choral ensemble are revisited. In the case of operettas, the choral parts have another role and function. The only resemblance to the choral parts of the opera is that in the operetta the choral ensemble represents the social entourage in which the action takes place. However, the role played by this ensemble is more of accompanying, creating or accentuating the atmosphere of different scenes, and the members of the choir often dance to the music played by the orchestra and to their own singing. The ballet ensemble featured in operas appears either with a thematic purpose in order to characterize different cultural or social environments, or as a “necessary evil” in the case of works created during periods in which - according to the cultural conventions of the time - the ballet scenes served as a kind of rest between crucial plot turns of the musical drama, which allowed the members of the public to cultivate their social relationships. However, these choreographic moments allowed authors to exhibit their composing skills, creating valuable and attractive intermezzos. In operettas, ballet sequences have similar functions, but it has primarily the role of enhancing the pageantry of the performance, thus giving viewers great fun moments.
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As a conclusion, we can say that there are many similarities between operas and operettas, and their differences have more do to with the intent behind their creation and less with the seriousness or the importance of the genre. Moreover, the performance of operettas requires as much hard work, talent and professional discipline from the instrumental performers, soloists, the choir, dancers, scriptwriters, costume designers, conductors and directors, as put into staging an opera.
Translated from Romanian by Juliánna Köpeczi
REFERENCES
***, Brockhaus Riemann Musiklexikon, Zeneműkiadó, Budapest, 1983-1985. ***, Dicționar de termeni muzicali (Dictionary of Musical Terms), Editura Stiintifica si Enciclopedica, Bucuresti, 1984, ed. a II-a: Editura Enciclopedica, Bucuresti, 2008. ***, Dictionnaire de la musique (Marc Vignal), Larousse, Paris, 1993. ***, Larousse Dicționar de mari muzicieni (Larousse Dictionary of Great Musicians), Univers Enciclopedic, Bucuresti, 2000. ***, The New Grove Dictionary of Music & Musicians, Macmillian Publishers Limited, London, 2001. Gál, György Sándor, Operettek könyve (The Book of Operettas), Zeneműkiadó, Budapesta, 1976. Gänzl, Kurt, The Encyclopedia of the Musical Theatre, Schirmer Books, 1994. Moisescu, Titus – Păun Miltiade, Opereta – ghid (The Operetta – A Guide), Editura Muzicală a Uniunii Compozitorilor din RSR, București, 1969. Németh, Amadé, A Magyar operett története (The History of Hungarian Operettas), Anno Kiadó, 2002. Winkler, Gábor, Operett – Szubjektív kalauz egy varázslatos világunkban (The Operetta – A Subjective Guide into a Magical World), Tudomány Kiadó, Budapesta, 2013.
Web Resources
Dimofte, Georgiana, Opera și opereta, asemănări și deosebiri (Opera and Operetta – Similarities and Differences), https://www.scribd.com/doc/285927143/Opereta-Si-Opereta-asemanari-si deosebiri, 2015 https://onlinemerker.com/giessen-viktoria-und-ihr-husar-von-paul-abraham- premiere
132 STUDIA UBB MUSICA, LXIII, 2, 2018 (p. 133 – 142) (RECOMMENDED CITATION) DOI:10.24193/subbmusica.2018.2.11
CHARACTERISTICS OF THE 19TH CENTURY FRENCH OPERA REFLECTED IN THE WORKS OF SAINT-SAËNS AND BIZET
NOÉMI KARÁCSONY1
SUMMARY. The present paper aims to reveal the essential features of 19th century French opera, highlighting those aspects which contributed to the eventual crystallization of a dramatic work seeking to reflect the characteristics of French music and culture. The manner in which melody, harmony, rhythm, dynamics, tempo and timbres are used is analysed, focusing on two representative works of the French Romanticism: Saint-Saëns’ Samson et Dalila and Bizet’s Carmen. Harmonic innovations, floating melodies, strong rhythmic patterns along with the marked influence of folklore and Oriental culture contribute to the distinguishing of 19th century French opera. Finally, attributes of the French singing school and the role of the mezzo-soprano voice in the compositions of the 19th century French operas are revealed.
Keywords: opera, French, Saint-Saëns, Bizet, mezzo-soprano
Introduction The artistic works of the 19th century was greatly influenced by the profound and complex philosophical ideas which inspired the artists of this epoch. Introspection and display of contrasting emotions gave birth to artistic works that reflected the turmoil and exacerbated sensitivity of the Romantic artist, lacking the coherence and clarity which characterize the creations of the Classical period. Marcel Brion believes that the terms Classical and the Romantic define not only dissimilar cultural, aesthetic and stylistic periods, but also “two immanent and permanent principles which assist human destiny, the first extending like a malady, in its decadent phase, to «the phenomenon of excrescence» of the Baroque.”2
1 Mezzo-soprano, PhD student of the Transilvania University of Brașov (The Faculty of Music), E-mail: [email protected] 2 Brion, Marcel, Pictura romantică (Romantic Painting), Editura Meridiane, București, 1972, p. 7.
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The opposition between Baroque and Classicism is thus continued in the 19th century, for the Baroque is considered by some critics (Wölfflin, Focillon, Eugenio d’Ors) to be a constant typology, a style endowed with its own characteristics, representing decadence, decline, a state of inner crisis. The harmony and equilibrium that mark the Classical period, an epoch guided by the principles of rational thinking, are gradually replaced by a new era of turbulent emotions, anxiety and despair – the Romantic Era, considered by Marcel Brion “an element of the Baroque aeon, born in a century of Baroque effervescence.”3 Brion underlines the fact that despite this similarity Romanticism lacks the stylistic unity which distinguishes the Baroque. This lack of stylistic unity is equally present is the visual arts (painting, sculpture), literature and music, manifesting itself in the stylistic diversity of the Romantic musical compositions. The idea of artistic freedom is emphasized, for art must express the artist’s personal manner of viewing and perceiving the world. This belief in the unicity and individuality of every human being defines the philosophy of the Romantic artist, especially the point of view of the French artist. Unlike German Romanticism, the ideas of which are based on a metaphysical view of the world and the longing for infinity, Sehnsucht, French Romanticism is animated by the ideas of the French Revolution (1789-1799), by the belief in humanity. The works of Camille Saint-Saëns and Georges Bizet reveal the manner in which French opera developed during the 19th century and clearly reflect the ideas expressed by French Romanticism.
Melody and the French Opera Among the elements which form a musical creation the melody is the most significant one, especially when related to the composition of an opera. Musicologist Grigore Constantinescu emphasizes the importance of a careful analysis of the melody, as well as the establishing of a “real diversity of the manifestations of melody in the romantic opera.”4 The Romantic Era represents a period of great development of the melody, reflecting the perpetual transformations, inner unpredictability and complexity of the human soul. Most often the melody is closely associated with Italian opera, the melodic inspiration of the Italian composers being very much admired and appreciated. Referring to an article in which Gounod had been criticised for the lack of melody in his opera Roméo et Juliete, Saint-Saëns writes: “So what was melody? We were never able to know; the Italians alone had the secret.”5
3 Brion, Marcel, Pictura romantică (Romantic Painting), Editura Meridiane, București, 1972, p. 11. 4 Constantinescu, Grigore, Diversitatea stilistică a melodiei în opera romantică (The Stylistic Diversity of Melody in Romantic Opera), Editura Muzicală, București, 1980, p. 28. 5 Lacombe, Hervé, The Keys to French Opera in the Nineteenth Century, University of California Press, Berkeley – Los Angeles, 2001, p. 271.
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Despite this fact, when analysing the French operas of the 19th century, one cannot help but notice the generous phrases built up from sinuous melodies and the gentle, sensitive songs, reminiscent of the French mélodie. These particular features of the French melody can be easily traced in the works of composers such as Gounod, Saint-Saëns, Bizet or Massenet, the latter being acclaimed for his powerful and touching melodies. In his work on French opera, musicologist Herve Lacombé cites the count Louis de Romain, himself a composer, referring thus to Massenet: “The world is full of learned contrapuntists who, loaded with fugues and drudgery, would happily trade a year of their lives for an hour’s inspiration. For Massenet, that hour lasted a lifetime. Here is the secret of his charm, the reason for his successes, the source of his talent. His melodies go straight to the heart; they delight us, move us, and embrace us. Vigor abounds to overflowing. Dazzled by the constantly refreshed brilliance of youthfulness and love, we never dream of probing the depths of the idea. His lightness is enough, for it consists of smiles, tenderness, and grace.”6 His fellow composer, Camille Saint-Saëns describes the melodies of Massenet with these words: “He had charm, attraction and a passion that was feverish rather than deep. His melody was wavering and uncertain, oftentimes more a recitative than melody properly so called, and it was entirely his own. It lacks structure and style. Yet how can one resist when he hears Manon at the feet of Des Grieux in the sacristy of Saint-Sulpice, or help being stirred to the depths by such outpourings of love? One cannot reflect or analyze when moved in this way.”7
A New View on Harmony The rules regarding the vertical aspect of music, harmony, established by the composers of the Classical period, as well as the musical constructions based on the tonic, subdominant, dominant progression were gradually relinquished by the Romantic composers. The complexity of the subjects these composers wished to express in their creations, as well as the intensity of their emotions reclaimed the use of new, unusual harmonic structures. Grigore Constantinescu believes that “the gradual emancipation of the melody from the harmonic structures is a distinguishing sign for the evolution and stylistic diversity of Romantic music.”8
6 Lacombe, Hervé, The Keys to French Opera in the Nineteenth Century, University of California Press, Berkeley – Los Angeles, 2001, p. 284-285. 7 Saint-Saëns, Camille, Musical Memories, Small, Maynard & Company Publishers, Boston, 1919, p. 215. 8 Constantinescu, Grigore – Diversitatea stilistică a melodiei în opera romantică (The Stylistic Diversity of Melody in Romantic Opera), Editura Muzicală, București, 1980, p. 39.
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Often the melody is embellished and gradually chromaticism is employed in the composition of certain phrases. In his opera Carmen Georges Bizet uses numerous elements which can be referred to as exotic, because of their foreign sound, reminding the listener of the Spanish folklore with its Arab influence. The composer achieves a harmonious balance between the Western musical writing and the exotic, one might say at times oriental character of the music in the depiction of the setting where his opera takes place. Bizet often employs chromaticism (for example in the Habanera) and chooses to adorn the phrases of his main feminine character, Carmen, with various ornaments, at times emphasizing the improvisatory nature of the melody. His works differ from those of his contemporaries precisely because of his particular musical language and harmonic innovations, perceived by the audience of his epoch as overly bold, even dissonant. The following musical example, a fragment from the Entr’act which precedes the final act of the opera Carmen, clearly illustrates the above-mentioned facts: E.g. 1
Excerpt from the opera Carmen: The Entr’acte preceding Act IV
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Folklore and modalism also bring innovative solutions for composers: sonorous constructions belonging to other cultures are employed in the operas, with the aim of suggesting the placement of the plot in a foreign space, one which differs greatly, even in sound, from the familiar surroundings. The purpose of this approach is an accurate representation. Thus, in the third act of the opera Samson et Dalila Saint-Saëns employs modal writing reminiscent of the Arab musical modes.
E.g. 2
Excerpt from the opera Samson et Dalila: the Bacchanale in Act III, scene 2
Polyphony is also employed by the 19th century French composers in their operas, where it fulfils a dramatic function: for example, in key moments of the plot, when several characters are on stage expressing their thoughts and feelings simultaneously. Conceived by Saint-Saëns as an oratorio at first, the opera Samson et Dalila is reminiscent of the works of Bach and Händel. The choral parts of the first and third act of the opera illustrate the great composing skill of Saint-Saëns, the composer employing contrapuntal compositional techniques, such as the fugue (in the first act of the opera), or the canon in the hymn to Dagon (the third act), the latter “suggesting festive music of the Baroque”9, according to musicologist Ralph P. Locke. An example regarding the simultaneous revealing of the characters’ feelings, above mentioned, could be the trio in the first act of the same opera, where the sensual phrases of Dalila are entwined with Samson’s vocal line and the warning the old Jew addresses to Samson.
9 Locke, Ralph P. - Constructing the Oriental ‘Other’: Saint-Saëns’s “Samson et Dalila”, Cambridge Opera Journal, Vol. 3, No. 3, Nov. 1991, p. 286.
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Rhythm, Dynamics and tempo The emergence and development of melody is closely linked to the rhythmic patterns used by the composer. The unfolding of the melody reflects the particularities of the employed rhythmic structures. The influence of folklore is very powerful in the Romantic Era, while the fascination regarding faraway, exotic cultures leads to numerous rhythmic innovations. In French operas of the 19th century rhythm can be used either to musically represent the setting in which the opera’s plot takes place, or to aid in achieving a more complex psychological description of the characters. Bizet often uses complex rhythmic formulae and triple metre in his opera Carmen for a more veridical depiction of the Spanish temperament of his characters, as well as the passionate environment of the setting where the action takes place. The following example, a fragment from Carmen’s song to Don Jose in the second act of the opera (“Je vais danser en votre honneur… La...la...la...”), evokes, through the rhythmic formulae and accompaniment chosen by the composer (castanets), the image of an exotic place and a foreign woman, perceived at once as sensual and alluring, but dangerous. E.g. 3
Excerpt from the opera Carmen: “Je vais danser en votre honneur… La...la...la...” (Act II)
In relation to French opera one must also refer to declamation, the principles of which serve as basis for the development of a distinct melody, remarkable for the harmonious union between music and speech. The melody has a great need for the direction imprinted on it by the rhythm, but at the same time it influences the contours of these rhythmic structures. The manner in which musical ideas are expressed is affected by the use of certain dynamic indications. The composer may use dynamics as a means of revealing the inner transformations of his characters and also for the musical depiction of the atmosphere of a certain setting. Dynamic indications bring colour to a work, the wealth of shades employed by romantic composers
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contributing to a complex portrayal of characters, places, eras. French composers of this epoch, in particular, distinguish themselves through the refined and delicate, yet powerful effects used in their works. The wealth of dynamic indications used by Saint-Saëns in Samson et Dalila, along with the timbres chosen by the composer, reveal a coloured, yet mysterious world. The instrumental introduction at the beginning of the second act of the opera closely resembles programme music, the phrases evoke the sensual and luxuriant image of an oriental setting and foretell the events which are about to unfold. The approaching storm is anticipated by the sound of thunder and lightning, the latter evoked by the music of Saint-Saëns in a remarkable manner and indicated in the score of the opera (Eclairs lointains).
E.g. 4
Excerpt from the opera Samson et Dalila: the instrumental phrases concluding Dalila’s aria, “Amour, viens aider ma faiblesse” (Act II)
The use of dynamics, the p, mf and f indications in the first bars of the instrumental introduction of Act II evoke the approach of an important event, at the same time suggesting the tension before the storm, the natural phenomena being a reflection of the characters’ inner emotional strain (E.g. 5). The contrast between various scenes of an opera or the alteration of a character’s emotional state is often marked and emphasized by changes of the tempo and dynamics. Such is the case in the Chanson boheme from Act II of the opera Carmen, where Bizet employs the amplification of vocal and instrumental sound, while at the same time the tempo is gradually accelerated: Andantino at the beginning of the aria, tempo animato just before the refrain following the second strophe, Più Mosso and sempre animando e crescendo at the third repetition of the refrain after the third strophe, gradually culminating in Presto, where the music explodes with all its force, expressing the fiery outburst of emotions (a perfect musical representation of the Latin temperament, perceived as exotic by the audience of the period).
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E.g. 5
Excerpt from the opera Samson et Dalila: the first bars of the instrumental introduction (Act II)
Voice and colour – the mezzo-soprano voice in opera The wealth of colours or timbres, vocal as well as instrumental, used by the Romantic composers increases the possibilities of dramatic expression. In French Romantic opera colours have an important role in the musical portrayal of characters. The voice type chosen by the composer, the vocal colour of the character, as well as the instruments used to accompany the vocal line of the singer, all contribute to the evocation of a specific atmosphere. It is well known that Italian singing and voice teaching was the supreme model which was closely followed by the other schools of singing, especially in the preceding centuries. In his work on the history of vocal pedagogy, singer, voice teacher and musicologist James Stark states the following: “When French, German, or English singing is discussed in the historical literature, it is almost always compared to the superiority of Italian singing. This is most pointed in discussions of French singing, from the seventeenth century onwards.”10 However, the author argues that the differences between these two schools of singing, Italian and French, are derived also from the different aesthetic tastes and the characteristics of each language. Although the French singing school gradually adopted the Italian manner of singing, one must bear in mind the fact that “the French took special interest in the language itself, with the subtleties of pronunciation and articulation having priority over the artifices of the singing voice.”11
10 Stark, James A. – Bel Canto: A History of Vocal Pedagogy, University of Toronto Press Incorporated, Toronto Buffalo London, 2008, p. 206 11 Stark, James A. – Bel Canto: A History of Vocal Pedagogy, University of Toronto Press Incorporated, Toronto Buffalo London, 2008, p. 211
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During the 19th century an improvement in French singing can be observed, a balance between the importance of speech and sound emission, which is probably due to the influence of teachers like Manuel Garcia and the Italian school of singing. Among the French singers of the 19th century the mezzo-soprano Pauline Viardot, daughter of the celebrated vocal pedagogue Manuel Garcia, was the one who inspired composers and artists of the epoch due to her extraordinary vocal range and exquisite technique, as well as her portrayal of dramatic roles. The title role of Gounod’s opera Sapho was first sung by her at the premiere of the opera in 1851 and she was the singer whom Saint- Saëns wished to portray Dalila in his upcoming opera. Although she did not sing the role of Dalila at the premiere of the opera, she did perform the second act of the work at a private reunion, preceding the completion of Saint-Saëns’ masterpiece. The rich, mysterious and sensual colour of the mezzo-soprano voice has inspired French composers of the century to create feminine roles like Sapho, Dalila, Balkis - the Queen of Sheba, Carmen, Cléopâtre or Charlotte. The middle register of the mezzo-soprano range is especially preferred by composers, the upward leaps emphasizing the most passionate moments of the dramatic action. The smoky colour of this voice type, with its changing shades, is the perfect vehicle for representing passion, mystery, the unknown and even that which is perceived as ‘evil’. In Samson et Dalila Saint-Saëns replaces the familiar recitativo with phrases which resemble dramatic declamation, a sung speech filled with passion, which favours the middle register of the mezzo-soprano voice. This is the case with the phrases which precede the aria “Amour, viens aider ma faiblesse”, and also with the sung dialogues, duets with other characters (the scene with the High Priest of Dagon or the love duet with Samson, in Act II). The innovations brought about by Bizet in Carmen regard the use of an extended vocal range of the mezzo-soprano voice and the endowment of this voice type with a highly expressive function. Chromaticism is used by the composer to accentuate the sensuality of Carmen, while the vocal flexibility required by some parts (Seguidilla or Chanson boheme) express her playfulness and love of freedom.
Conclusions The operas of Camille Saint-Saëns or Georges Bizet, along with those of other French composers of the 19th century, mark a new era in the evolution of French opera. These works strive to eliminate mannerism and superficiality, while the elements employed by the composers must have, first of all, a dramatic function. The evolution of vocal pedagogy, as well as
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the continuous search for the perfect means of expressing the essence of the French spirit and character will eventually lead to a new type of musical drama, crystallized especially in the works of Jules Massenet. Inspired by the Italian ideal, French opera aims to express, through a refined and sensitive manner of singing, the sophisticated and elegant nature of the French culture.
REFERENCES
Bizet, Georges, Carmen, G. Schirmer, Inc., New York, 1895. Brion, Marcel, Pictura romantică (Romantic Painting), Editura Meridiane, București, 1972. Constantinescu, Grigore, Diversitatea stilistică a melodiei în opera romantică (The Stylistic Diversity of Melody in Romantic Opera), Editura Muzicală, București, 1980. Lacombe, Hervé, The Keys to French Opera in the Nineteenth Century, University of California Press, Berkeley – Los Angeles, 2001. Locke, Ralph P., Constructing the Oriental ‘Other’: Saint-Saëns’s “Samson et Dalila”, Cambridge Opera Journal, Vol.3, No.3, Nov. 1991, pp. 261 – 302. Saint-Saëns, Camille, Samson et Dalila, A. Durand et Fils, Éditeurs, Paris, ca. 1895. Saint-Saëns, Camille, Musical Memories, Small, Maynard & Company Publishers, Boston, 1919. Stark, James A., Bel Canto: A History of Vocal Pedagogy, University of Toronto Press Incorporated, Toronto Buffalo London, 2008.
142 STUDIA UBB MUSICA, LXIII, 2, 2018 (p. 143 – 164) (RECOMMENDED CITATION) DOI:10.24193/subbmusica.2018.2.12
INTERSECTIONS OF ARTS. STRUCTURAL AND LANGUAGE ANALOGIES
STELIAN IONAȘCU1
SUMMARY. Analysing and interpreting the artistic phenomena outlines a fact: arts do intersect, stimulating one another on their ascending way, mutually increasing their force of expression on behalf of the artist, and their measure of understanding on behalf of the recipient. These intersections, transpositions and equivalences between arts, both in attitude and content, could be explained whether by the insufficiency of specific means for a certain artistic field (i.e. music, painting, literature) and thus, a need to ‘borrow’ them from elsewhere, whether by the assumption that they are results of deliberate actions, owing their riches and beauty to this very act of ‘borrowing’, without ever affecting the specificity of any of the arts involved. Consequently, we might come across a parlance of colour and a colouring of speech, a musicality of poetry and poetry of music. Paradoxically, we perceive a colouring of a sculpture, determined by the different ways of light shining on the textures of a certain masterpiece, depending on its volumes and materiality.
Keywords: art, colour, musical form, icon, timbre, rhythm, compositional structure, poetry of music, programming music.
Arts – however they may seem distinct and accurately defined within their spheres – confirm a certain unity through their common source. In essence, all of them are nothing but a practice of consciousness. By means of the arts’ specific language, man penetrates the mysteries of the world, thus recreating snatches of a new reality irradiating from the artist’s conscience as offerings of the genius2.
1 Pbr. Lect. Ph.D., Faculty of Orthodox Theology ‘Patriarch Justinian’, Bucharest, E-mail: [email protected] 2 All artistic manifestations have in common and thus can be reduced to the act of communication, from which ensues the syncretism of arts. From this perspective, masterpieces are not so different in essence, not even when they come out of distinct raw materials. Painting bears the seed of musical rhythm, equally music is some kind of architecture of sounds. Poets have often rhythmed verses of melancholic shades, the same way as painters have often offered their canvas a musical harmony.’ (Adrian Leonard Mociulschi, Artă și comunicare [Art and Communication], Bucharest, Curtea Veche Publishing, 2013, p. 9.)
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In its essence, the language of arts – be it acoustic, visual or conceptual – reveals something beyond the world and its ordinary life, something beyond the visible and the invisible, putting forward a process of communication and cognition, as art is a foremost quality which man did keep even after falling into sin, proving that in spite of this, his depths remained untouched3: ‘You are my hiding place; you will protect me from trouble and surround me with songs of deliverance.’ (Psalm 32, 7)4 This is why one should not be surprised when posthumous critique of a piece of art highlights certain meanings which were not at least intended by its creator. Such situations are only natural when the artist leads his masterpiece on a way which gradually becomes autonomous, at times even paradigmatic, so that the seeds of suggestion spring into actual movements or revolutions in art5.
A. Colour and Music. The Icon and the Musical Form Music critique is plentiful of expressions such as: chromatic harmony, orchestral colour, the pianist’s colour palette etc. The word ‘colour’ can be linked to any of the elements forming a composition (melody, harmony, instrumentation)6. Theory of music tells us that the timbre is strongly linked to the colour, as a feature of sound by means of which a voice can be recognized in accordance with the source which produces it. One can also make a correspondence between light (colour) and timbre (hearing). Ștefan Niculescu reckons that it is as impossible for us to perceive objects in the absence of light as it is to hear sound in the absence of the timbre7. Optical and acoustic vibrations offer our cognition the sense of timbre and colours. Still, correspondences between luminous and sonorous sensations rest subjective, so that colour in music can only be equated to that in fine arts on a speculative
3 Man’s growth through God is indeed possible, for man, from the very beginning, was not created perfect, but perfectible. Bible tells that ‘God saw all that he had made, and it was very good’ (Genesis, I, 31), but this does not include man. He is still molding in his Creator’s hands, unfinished, bearing the sufferings of birth and rebirth; God makes retouches, erasures, additions on him, thereby man is never equal to something else, but only to himself; man bears sadness, yearnings, he craves for the infinite… (Archiprb. Roman Braga, Pe drumul credinței [On the Path of Faith], HDM Press, Inc. 1995, p.203-204.) 4 The translation of the excerpt from Psalm 32 is reproduced from the Holy Bible, New International Version®, NIV® Copyright ©1973, 1978, 1984, 2011 by Biblica, Inc.®, available at www.biblegateway.com (last accessed the 7th of February 2018). 5 Costin Monea, Antologie de literatură, muzică și arte plastice [Antology of Literature, Music and Fine Arts], Library of Romanian Academy, n.d., p. 2. 6 Ștefan Niculescu, Reflecțiidespre muzică [Reflections On Music], Editura Muzicală, Bucharest, 1980, p.255. 7 Ibidem, p. 256.
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basis, and not scientifically8. In the musical field, the art of colour leans on contrasts. Relations between chords – tension – recession – or combinations of orchestral timbres produce the colour of music. While this was ignored during the Middle Age, it was to be acknowledged during the Romantic period and mainly by the impressionists. Debussy, Mussorgsky, Enesco, Khachaturian, Shostakovich were composers who created national masterpieces inspired by folklore, by means of which they offered their posterity modal musical creations, built through colour. In order to illustrate this relation between colour and musical form I choose to focus on a stylistic approach of two icons from a musical perspective, or with means issued from musical rhetoric. Nikolai M. Tarabukin (1889-1956), in his work The Sense of the Icon, refers to an element which he considers to be fundamental in art – the rhythm: If the movement of body, sound and word loses its rhythmic subordination, dance will become a prosaic walk, sound will lose its musicality, and word – its aura of poetry9.Though he was not an actual connaisseur of musical forms – which sometimes lead him to wrong assumptions – Tarabukin still proved originality in the analysis of some icons, leaning mainly on a specific musical vocabulary and making correspondences with forms of musical construction10. The icon Jesus’ Entry into Jerusalem (Tretyakov Gallery, 15th century, according to the School of Novograd, Board 1) is regarded as an ABA construction, finding its correspondences in Baroque’s classic forms11. From a
8 Research carried out by acousticians reached the conclusion that correspondences between acoustic and visual sensations are as follows: trumpet=red, oboe=grizzly, clarinet=yellow etc. On the other hand, sociological research carried aut on a certain sample of subjects that correspondences between instruments’ sounds and colours are established otherwise than it had been provedscientifically. 9 Nikolai M. Tarabukin, Sensul icoanei [The Sense of the Icon], Editura Sophia, Bucharest, 2015, p.225. 10 In the pages where he analyzes the painting Jesus’ Entry into Jerusalem, Nikolai Tarabukin uses no less than 36 expressions borrowed from musical jargon, which stands for the constant attention he paid to the relation between musical forms and plastic arts: the rhythmic aspect of plastic arts, the richness of rhythm, harmonious as music, formal harmony, the dynamic principle of composition construction, the symbol of dynamic rest, particular rhythm and tempo, moderate movement (andante), a brisker movement (allegro), the horizontal motif of movement, introduces a new theme, the musical analogy with the three-parts sonata, the rhythmic endowment of the iconographer, principal voice, the temporal interval of the composition, according to the principle of fugue, canon, cantus firmus, the cadence of plastic melodies, the accompanying voice, intervals, cadences, unison, the principle of musical harmony, polyphonic style, harmony and counterpoint, musical form, the pure melody of Middle Age music, tonal correspondence, the harmonic construction of the color palette, the chromatic harmony, chromatic melodies, rhythms syncopes, introductive motif… 11 On the musical forms, see: Dimitrie Cuclin, Tratat de forme muzicale [Treaty on Musical Forms], Tipografia Bucovina, 1934; Valentin Timaru, Analiza muzicală între conștiința de gen și conștiința de formă [Musical Analysis Between Genre and Form Awareness], Editura Universității din
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musical perspective, the most common tripartite forms – both homophonous and polyphonic – are: the lied form, the sonata form and the fugue form. All three are articulated on the ABA, ABAvar or ABA' structures, meaning: Exposition (A), Contrast (B) and Repetition (A, identical, varied or similar)12. The lied form is an ABA type (tripartite form), the sonata form is structured: Exposition (A), Amplification (B) and Round (A), while the fugue form – a polyphonic one – is structured: Expository Zone (A), Progressive Zone called Entertainment(B) and Zone of Tonal Recurrence (A). Based on these principles, Jesus’ Entry into Jerusalem consists of: the crowd celebrating Christ (1), Christ on the foal of a donkey (2) and the crowd welcoming Christ (3). The first movement (andante AN) goes from the left to the right, being outlined by the diverse positioning of legs, by the light leaning of faces and by the stretching of hands in the direction of movement. The second theme is central to the composition: Christ sitting on the foal of the donkey, the tree and some children’s faces strewing branches on the path (2). The movement (B) gets more intense, linking the first and the last movement by the twisting face of Christ, Who is looking to those rearwards, but Whose body is oriented to the crowd welcoming Him. The third part of the composition brings back the theme of the first movement (Avar), the crowd awaiting Christ. This crowd is caught in a tense expectation. On a pictorial level, this tension of a waiting is suggested by the position of heads lacking isocephaly13 and by the stretched hands, carrying palm branches. The symmetry of the composition is attained by means of the two extreme themes, A and Avar – the middle part representing a different theme –, as well as by means of the elements in the upper plan of the icon. The movement of the theme (A) is replaced in the middle plan by the descending and oblique form of the mountaintops, to be continued in the second section with the bent neck of the donkey, whose correspondents in musical composition are the sequence and the imitation14. All this agglomeration unburdens in the third part (Avar), the same way as in music, the round consists of re-bringing the initial tonality and the elements in the opening of the piece.
Oradea, 2003; Livia Teodorescu-Ciocănea, Tratat de forme și analize muzicale [Treaty on Musical Forms and Analysis], Editura Muzicală, 2005; Petruța Măniuț, Tratat de forme muzicale [Treaty on Musical Forms], Editura Universității TRANSILVANIA Brașov, 2008; Gérard Denizeau, Să înțelegem și să identificăm genurile muzicale [Let’s Understand and Identify Musical Genres], Editura Meridiane, Larousse (translation by Cristina Popescu). 12 Livia Teodorescu-Ciocănea, ibidem, p. 29. 13 Nikolai M. Tarabukin, op. cit., p. 228. 14 The sequence is a technique in musical composition consisting of the presentation of a certain musical motif on a different stage than the initial one. Imitation differs from it by the fact it consists of repeating a certain motif or fragment by a different voice (for detailed definitions, see Dumitru Bughici, Dicționar de forme și genuri muzicale [Dictionary of Musical Forms and Genres], Editura Muzicală, Bucharest, 1979).
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The spiral-shaped face of Christ finds its expressive correspondence in the parallel curvature of the tree15, similarly to the way in which the motionlessness of the awaiting crowd is emphasized by the static architectural forms of Jerusalem. All these elements stand for an exceptional rhythmic endowment of the artist, the same as the parallel plans seem to have been conceived as an actual orchestra score. Jesus’ Entry into Jerusalem is a sum of entrances of characters, similar to the thematic entrances in Baroque polyphonic music, only that in this case the intervals are spatial, not temporal. Tarabukin is indeed very original when he makes a chromatic analysis of the icon. He places it in a new, Renaissance age, escaped from the rigor and canons of the Middle Age. Colour quits being uniform in a demarcated area, as in the frescos of the Early Middle Age, a feature in correspondence with the pure melody of medieval music (Gregorian chants). In Renaissance painting, colour (similarly to voice in musical harmony) holds a meaning only in relation to others (association of tonalities). The harmonic construction of colour is perceived as a simultaneous effect of the chromatic accord. Instead of covering large surfaces with a unique colour, as was the practice during the early Middle Age, the Renaissance period brings a pictorial form issued from a passage from one nuance to another within the same colour or from the linking of several colours in an unique accord. The chromatic structure of the mountain was elaborated on the basis of these principles. The pale (white) shades of the superior mounds are chromatically sequenced with the dark (ochre) shades of inferior layers (or of cavities). The colour marks may be perceived as simultaneous sounds of several notes brought together into chords. The iconographer does not offer a half-illusory, half-realistic image of the mountain, but – by means of colour and lines – he builds spatiality in a musical way. One might assume that the icon painter discovers, by pictorial means, the musical melody whose theme is the mountain16. While Jesus’ Entry into Jerusalem belongs to the group of polyphonic forms, The Holy Trinity by Andrei Rublev (Board 2) belongs, as far as form is concerned, to the ABA type categories, homophonous and tripartite. The left side of the composition – through the angel’s figure torn to the centre – stands as a foreshadowing of a moderated movement (andante). The third part (the right side of the composition) is a mirror reflection, whose correspondent in musical composition technique is the recurrence17. The orientation of the angel
15 Nikolai M. Tarabukin, op. cit., p. 231. 16 Ibidem, p. 233. 17 Recurrence is a means of expressing a musical idea through a rigurous succession of its consisting sounds, from the first to the last one – ‘mirror-view’ (See detailed definitions in Livia Teodorescu-Ciocănea, op. cit.; *** Dicționar de termeni muzicali[Dictionary of Musical Forms], Editura Științifică și Enciclopedică, Bucharest, 1984.).
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on the right side, more curved to the centre than the first one, as well as the garments’ folds, more acutely scattered on the diagonal, stand for an Avar. This orientation is strengthened in the second plan by the steep part of the mountain – centre-oriented, in its turn. The linking element in the composition is the figure of the angel at the centre, spiral-shaped, the same as in Jesus’ Entry into Jerusalem. The angel at the centre looks to the left, but his chest is right-oriented. The compositional structure of The Holy Trinity is based on the principle of organic symmetry. The representation on the right-side of the composition is repeated at the left, as if it were a mark issued of a 180 degrees twisting movement, around the central axe of the image. The angel on the left turning to the right is like a mirror reflection of the one on the right, turning to the left. If the two sides of the image were superposed, the angels’ representations would almost coincide in their main contours.18 Symmetries are to be found as well in the lower plan: the same mirrored position of the legs, the stalls and the dais (recurrence). But variation elements are also to be found, for instance the position of angels’ hands, the colours of the garments, the position of the hands and the inclination of heads infringe this symmetry on purpose, in order to avoid the monotony of the composition. Therefore, distinct elements form a vocabulary, while the elements of syntax offer symmetry to the composition. The configuration of the angels’ wings, from the first to the last one, follows the line of inferior and superior curves, suggesting a melody assumed, with little variations, by the other Persons of the Holy Trinity. The rhythmic feature of each angel in turn defines the personality of each hypostasis of the Holy Trinity – something which leads Tarabukin, in his analysis, to the idea of identification19: The left-side angels’ garments, unfolding vertically, design, by means of their rhythm, the serene, feminine, lyrical appearance of this one (the Son). The folds of the robe worn by the angel in the centre over the shoulder outline a very precise and solid drawing, in which prevail triangular forms, creating an epical and tranquil image, resolute and authoritative (the Father). Last, but not least, the folds of the right-side figure’s garments, diagonally oriented
18 Nikolai M. Tarabukin, op. cit., p. 242-243. 19 I admit not knowing for certain if it is essential to identify the Persons of the Holy Trinity in Rublev’s icon, but it is a fact that competent opinions on the topic are distinct. Father Gabriel Bunge claims that the Son is centered, pointing at the Chalice of His Sacrifice praying the Father (at His right)–humbly leaning His head – to send the Holy Spirit (at His left) in the world. Humbly leaning His head as well, the Holy Spirit shows His wish to accomplish His act of salvation. The same opinion is expressed by L. A. Uspenski and V.N. Lazarev, differing from that of P. Evdochimov, N.A. Diomina, N.A. Golubțov și N. Tarabukin, all of whom claim that the angel in the center should be identified with the Father (Father Gabriel Bunge, Icoana Sfintei Treimi a Cuviosului Andrei Rubliov [The Icon of the Holy Trinity of the Devout Andrei Rublev], Editura Deisis, Sibiu, 1996, Preface by deacon Ioan I. Ică Jr., p. 9).
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and sharply intersected, configure a melody which stresses the impulse and dramatic nature of this angel symbolizing the third Person of the Holy Trinity (the Holy Spirit)20. Tarabukin asserts that such compositions were indeed created consciously. The fact that exceptional masters such as Theophanes the Greek, Andrei Rublev or Dionysus created individual masterpieces of such high quality can only be explained by an exceptional technical endowment, by mystic talents and fine organisations of form and content. If the whole creative process had been a random fruit of intuition, no such detailed descriptions of how to elaborate an icon’s composition could have been written21.
B. Music and word22. Program music. The poetry of music The encounter of these two artistic horizons – music and poetry – engendered in the history of music the so-called program music. This is the instrumental music, with no text, through which the author intends to convey a certain message, a topic or a state of mind to the audience. When creating programmatic works, the composer sets from an extra-musical argument – be it a historical fact, a poem, a painting – on the sole condition that this is well-known to the audience. The programmatic trend reached its peaks during the Romantic age, as it was, in fact, the return of a certain type of Renaissance rhetoric, though with different techniques and means of expression, through which a composer aims to establish a correspondence between two different things, for instance describing nature by means of music23. Consequently, the composer presents a story, an action he suggests through music, helping the audience to decipher it by means of a text are at least a title. (For instance, it is known that the Fantastic Symphony of Berlioz was accompanied by a leaflet which the audience used to read while they listened to the work.)
20 Nikolai M. Tarabukin, op. cit., p. 244. 21 Ibidem, p. 246. 22 Valentina Sandu-Dediu finds a musical correspondent between music and literature by analyzing composer Robert Schuman’s creation, who was all the while interested in literature. She writes that the whole music is written with lines of different sizes and thicknesses, bearing multiple significations. The dot becomes a note (musical height), the line shows the flow of music in time (…). Literature is also written with dots and lines. Actually, the first chapters of her book Octave paralele [Parallel Octaves] share the theme of the intersection of arts. (Valentina Sandu-Dediu, Octave Paralele [Parallel Octaves], Bucharest, Humanitas, 2014, p. 236.) 23 Tiberiu Soare, Nouă povești muzicale. Transcrierea conferințelor din seria „Vorbe despre muzică și muzicieni” organizate de Fundația Calea Victoriei și dirijorul Tiberiu Soare [Nine Musical Stories. Transcriptions of Conferences from the Series ‘Talks on Music and Musicians’, organised by Calea Victoriei Foundation and Conductor Tiberiu Soare], p.80.
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The famous Seasons24 by Vivaldi (La primavera, L’Estate, L’Autunno, L’Inverno) hold, for each of the four parts, a lyrical synopsis, after which the most suggestive images are inserted in the suitable part of the score. Each concert represents some of the most pictorial inventions, as if it were drawing the desired images25. The Sixth Symphony, also known as The Pastoral Symphony, mirrors the way Beethoven felt nature. With it, he brings new elements in the art of symphonic classicism and confirms programmatic music. The Sixth Symphony is uncommon because it comprises five movements – not four, as usual, and the last three movements are played with no interruption26. The first movement, entitled Awakening of Cheerful Feelings on Arriving in the Country, refers to shepherds wandering in the fields; one can listen to the echo of whistles and to birds chirping into the daylight. The second movement (Scene by the Brook)consists of a descriptive music picturing the murmur of the river, the sound of nightingales (the recorder), of quails (the oboe), of cuckoos (the clarinet). The third movement: Merry Dances of the Country folk suggests the different rhythms of dance, The Storm – when the entire good mood is ruined by mysterious, approaching sounds, gloomy tonalities, timpani strikes (thunders), electric currents of violins (the wind), closing with Shepherd’s Song: Thankful Feelings after the Storm. The end is a thanksgiving hymn, dedicated to the beauties of nature. In 1830, Hector Berlioz wrote The Fantastic Symphony27, thus entitled in order to suggest that it was not a classical, commonplace symphony, but that it aimed to put forward audacious musical ideas. As Berlioz was an adorer of Beethoven, he embraced the idea of breaking the standards and conceived his symphony in five movements – the same as The Pastoral Symphony–and after he finished the score, he wrote a text meant to be read by the audience during the unfolding of the symphony. The first movement
24 The Seasons of Vivaldi were vanguard works for the author’s times, standing for his huge courage to take the risk of severe criticism from his contemporary fellows. He was said to have destroyed the musical harmony because he was based on the shocks he provoked to the audience. Tiberiu Soare makes a phenomenological analysis of the impact that a played score has on a competent public. When bringing new elements into a work, the immediate result is the shock and only after several auditions the work becomes pleasant. This is why, when one recognizes a certain musical fragment, the first thing awaited is a confirmation and not a discovery: he claims that the peril may reside here; such music might be more enjoyed if listened to with pauses rather than repeatedly (ibidem, p. 29). 25 Valentin Timaru, Stilistică muzicală (volumul I) [Musical Stylistics (1st volume)], 2nd edition, Media-Musica, Cluj-Napoca, 2014, p.101. 26 Gh. Merișescu, Istoria muzicii universale [History of Universal Music], Conservatorul de Muzică ‘Gh. Dima’ – Cluj, Bucharest, 1968, p.216. 27 For details, see the biographical work on the composer: Adriana Liliana Rogovschi, Hector-Luis Berlioz, Editura Didactică și Pedagogică, R.A., 166 p.
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(Reveries – Passions) portrays the young artist – an alter ego of the composer28– struggling to find the means of expression, the work being a sonorous description of the sufferings stirred by a strong passion. From the very first movement there is a theme which appears and is to be found further on (more or less recognizable), the so-called l’idée fixe. This theme represents the woman of his dreams, for whom the young man develops an obsession. The second movement (A Ball) is a waltz, during which the young man catches once again the sight of his beloved, thus introducing the theme. The third movement (Scene in the Fields) is a pastoral, presenting the young man decided to leave the crowded burg and retreat to the countryside. Alpenhorn melancholic sounds insinuate during the piece, but not for long, because a remote thunder announces bad presentiments as l’idée fixe appears once again. During the fourth movement, the hero dreams of himself killing his beloved out of a jealousy crisis, and, following a trial, the court convicts him to death. March to the Scaffold is indeed an execution by guillotine, where the pizzicato sounds of violins depict the detachment of the head from the body. The fifth movement is entitled Dream of the Night of the Sabbath29. We find the hero already in the Other World, where he hears strange sounds. The theme of the beloved emerges once again, this time hideous and distorted up to the paroxysm, while the hero’s soul is carried to hell, leaving the story without a happy end30. Pictures at an Exhibition (1874) by Mussorgsky are a suite of ten pieces composed for the piano, which Maurice Ravel orchestrated later on. The work was inspired by an exhibition organised in honour of the painter V. Hartman, a close friend of Mussorgsky and of The Mighty Five, and its originality lies in successively describing the impressions stirred by the variety of themes which his friend had approached through his art31. The ten pieces, contrasting in relation to one another, are linked by ‘the theme
28 Tiberiu Soare, op. cit., p. 117. 29 Dream of the Night of the Sabbath is described by Berlioz as follows: The hero dreams of himself being surrounded by a disgusting crowd of sorcerers and demons assembled in order to celebrate the Night of the Sabbath. The melody of his beloved – which until than was suave – appears as a trivial and base tavern song. The woman makes her appearance at the Sabbath in order to be present at her victim’s funeral. She is nothing but a courtisan, suitable for such bacchanalia. The bells ring… the choir sings Dies Irae, other two choirs repeat it in a burlesque way, in the end the dance of the Sabbath turns into a whirlwind and in its climax melts a Dies Irae and so, the vision comes to an end. (Gh. Merișescu, op. cit., p. 72). 30 The woman in Berlioz’s work is Harriet Smithson, an actress who had come from Paris to act Ophelia in Hamlet and Juliet in Romeo and Juliet. It is then when he saw her, fell in love at the age of 27, got rejected and then wrote the Fantastic Symphony. After 10 years, when presenting once again the Symphony, Harriet Smithson was in the audience. Berlioz confesses his passionate love and accepts to marry him (Adriana Liliana Rogovschi,op. cit., p. 54-56). 31Gh. Merișescu,ibidem, p. 174.
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of the walk’ (Promenade), which changes its tonality, its harmonic envelopment and its rhythm along the way, depending on the images succeeding one another in the gallery. Pictures at an Exhibition by Mussorgsky are not actual pictures musically represented, but a transposition and equivalence on an attitudinal and gestural plan, within reach for the musical language, but not for the outlining of pure images32. Liszt, though his creation is characterized by a great diversity of forms and genres, is outstanding mainly due to the programmatic character of his symphonic poems. Thus, he carries farther the experience of two grand musicians: Beethoven and Berlioz. Berlioz had presented his Fantastic Symphony on condition that the audiences went through a text written by the composer. Liszt takes another path of programmatic music, not insisting on some external explanations or descriptions from the daily life of his characters, but regards a subtler programmatic, one that reaches deeper psychological layers33. What he did understand was that a programme could never exhaust the meaning of music; therefore it can lack details without music being deprived of its true substance. Franz Liszt is the one who broke away from a strict sonorous domain, enriching the field of music with plenty of equivalences. The famous Water Games at Villa d'Esteor Sposalizio are pioneering works marking the intersections with visual arts. Maurice Ravel, in Daphnis et Chloe, has a piece entitled Le lever du jour, namely ‘the sunrise’. The luxurious scoring that he uses, the impressive risings, the amplifications achieved by means of orchestral timbres give birth to a magnificent piece. As it is a choreographic work, the ballet Daphnis et Chloe intersects the musical domain – with its suggestive orchestral timbre –, the choreographic domain of continuous movement and visual domain of the stage. Messiaen, very keen on ornithology, develops a passion out of recording the exotic birds in the Amazonian jungle. He thereby acquires a profound sensitivity, which will outburst in his musical language. By means of this language he strives to translate, for the auditors, all the nuances of this realm of birds. Through Messiaen, programmatic music gives its account on a very subtle and original level34.
32 Alexandru Leahu, Coloristica muzicală și interferențe cu artele vizuale și cu sugestia poetică [Musical Colour Palettes and Intersections with Visual Arts and Poetical Suggestion], Publishing House of the National University of Music, Bucharest, 2012, p.11. 33 Gh. Merișescu,op. cit., p. 81. 34 In Messiaen’s works, this aspect proves a particular intensity in its way to convey, through the complex of sound and chords, a chromatic impression. No primary colours such as red, yellow or blue are involved, but combinations. And the strange thing appears when, in a score entitled The Colours of the Celestial Citadel (…) it is said that brass instruments must generate a reddish sonority and wood instruments a bluish sonority, with pearly pigments. Just imagine the musician having to play this, wondering how such a combination should be put in act (Alexandru Leahu, op. cit., p. 8-9).
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In his Prometheus, Scriabin required the projection of colourful lights while the opera was unfolding. Evidently, means of expression were meagre in his time, but his instructions requested theatrical movements, for the choir to sing and whisper, he wanted to propagate lights and smells in the hall, an entire palette of sensations meant to synesthetic enrich the performance as a whole35. Debussy was impressed by folk ensembles arrived from Bali, Indochina and other exotic areas, all of whom inspired him to write the Preludes, these musical miniatures in the spirit of the stamps, in which all the musical development served the metaphorical title. Debussy’s programmatism seizes new and original meanings. Music issued from his quill became colour and rhythmed tempos, an actual outburst of light and beauty, entirely harmonizing the particular and the artistic beauty, according to his belief that in music, painting means singing36. In this fortunate atmosphere, the musician becomes a friend of poets and painters. Debussy used to tell Varèse that he loved images almost as much as he loved music37. Professor Alexandru Leahu makes an exceptional synthesis of these united parlances – music, poetry, and colour. He asserts that cultivated music, in its pictorial and colourful dimension, requires for the human psychic to vibrate as if it were a resonance box giving birth to those combinatorial sounds mentioned by Hindemith, the evidence of a process of sublimation or metabolization of some essences and nuances of high spirituality. Equally, the creator’s imagination in what concerns musical timbre defines his inclination to depicting, being a cosamentale and composing the priceless endowment through which the orchestral genius encounters the substance of the wonderful things it evokes38.
C. Colour, Word, Taste and Touch Understanding arts in their intersection can enable the perception of a painting otherwise than by exclusive regard, namely by means of taste. Between 1518-1519, Titian painted the picture known as The Worship of Venus (Board 3) for the Camerini d'alabastro of Alfonso Ist d'Este, Duke of Ferrara39. In achieving this, Titian set off from the sponsor’s indications, but
35 Ibidem, p. 9. 36 Vasile Iliuț, De la Wagner la contemporani (Volumul III) [From Wagner to Our Contemporaries (3rd volume)], Bucharest, Editura Muzicală, p.29. 37 Brigitte Francoise-Sappey, Istoria muzicii în Europa [History of Music in Europe], translated from French by Ileana Littera, Grafoart, p.126. 38 Alexandru Leahu, op. cit., p. 19. 39 Aesthetics of arts speak of the ‘sweetness’ of music as of its main quality. During the 13th century, in full scholasticism, Saint Bonaventura claims that ‘beauty’ (speciositas) is only a characteristic of visual arts. Another quality is confined to music and that is ‘sweetness’ (suavitas). See Friedrich Hölderlin’s To the Fates. (Edgar Papu, Despre stiluri [On Styles], Bucharest, Editura Eminescu, 1986, p.349).
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mostly from Philostratus’s description (Chapter VI, Eikones, Imagines, 3rd century), with reference to an imaginary picture entitled Erotes (Cupids). While for Philostratus the great challenge was to depict an image by means of words (ekphrasis), for Titian the challenge was vice versa: he had to re-convert words into the original image40.Thus, a series of relations emerge: word-image, hearing-seeing, logos-centeredness and ocular-centeredness. It is said that Titian’s picture is so accomplished that Philostratus’s speech could be delivered right in front of it41. But, if we choose to reproduce an excerpt of the text, we can notice that Philostratus aimed to incite his audience even more: ‘The pleasant scent coming from the orchard, doesn’t it reach you? Or has your smell turned lazy? … Well, listen carefully (prothumosakoue), my words will fetch the scent of fruit.’42 Obviously, the smell of the picture is not at all that of the actual matter it was made of, but of apple scent: ‘…be ready to listen, because soon, the apples are going to strike you together with the words.’43 Therefore, the picture not only can be seen or smelled, but it also touches its onlooker. The core of it rests the apple, this symbolic object of desire, from Adam and Eve to the famous Apple brand of our days. In his painting, Titian introduces one smarter element, as a secret cipher meant to unleash a deeper insight into its mysteries: a putti (Cupid) left with no playing partner, as the others, but alone, regarding the spectators while he is biting or kissing an apple, ready to throw it in the face of the onlooker at any time. In his essay, Victor Ieronim Stoichiță stresses the capacities of painting to unleash a sensorial transfer, a process along which perception is de-centralized and then re-centralized44.If one asked him ‘How to taste a painting?’, maybe his answer would be: ‘By looking at it!’ In turn, if one asked a musician ‘How to taste music?’, the latter would certainly answer: ‘By listening to it!’
D. Poetry and Music. The Music of Poetry The relation between word and musical sound has always been a main topic of interest among musicologists, literary critics and analysts of the poetical text. While assuming that this article is a territory too limited to
40 Victor Ieronim Stoichiță, Cum se savurează un tablou și alte studii de istoria artei [How to Taste a Painting and Other Studies on the History of Art],Bucharest,Humanitas, p.12. 41 Ibidem, p. 14. 42 Ibidem, p. 18. 43 Ibidem, p. 31. 44 Edgar Papu, a renowned author of essays in Romanian critique claims that during the Romantic period, painting manifests a particular musicality by means of its intimate expressions, released from the spectacular unfoldings of the Baroque. Communication is achieved almost without words, which are only to be felt through the touch of a complex inner clavier. The correspondence between music and painting during the Romantic period is eloquent because both of them are subjective. In music, there are no objective states of mind (Edgar Papu, Despre stiluri [On Styles], Bucharest, Editura Eminescu, 1986, p. 344-345).
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offer a complete account on the topic, in all its nuances, I still dare to make a synthesis, just in order to bring forward a few Romanian poets who were interested in the inner resonance of the verse and in the musicality of poetical structures45.Let us start from Vasile Alecsandri, a poet whose work marks a transition from Classicism to Romanticism. While in his forties years, he wrote the famous ‘pastels’ (‘pasteluri’), descriptive poems mostly based on pictorial techniques (much more than on musical ones)46, a lyricism of pastoral serenity and happiness. By means of this pictorial technique, Alecsandri aimed to ‘paint’ the plains of Bărăgan47.The poet is rather practical than contemplative. He is afraid of everything that paralyzes life – as winter or consenescence – and he is exhilarated by everything that stimulates life and existence – such as summer and youth. Mihai Eminescu is one of the poets who most stirred the attention of Romanian musicians who composed songs based on poetry. In the preface of a book, Tudor Arghezi calls him ‘this Beethoven of speech’48. No other comparison could have been more evocative, as it positions Eminescu in the sphere of parlance devisers, beside a deviser of immortal music. Studies carried out on the work and the biography of this great national poet have brought to light his interest in music, his urge to refine his inner hearing, which is supposed to have functioned similarly to that of a composer. Vasile Alecsandri dedicates a work to Eminescu – From the Inner Music to the Music of Spheres49 – in which he makes an analogy between some poems and musical forms: thus, the Third Letter would be a symphony, heroic poems hold characteristics of musical drama, and verses with an antique rhythm show that the poet aimed to reach an orphic musicality. Eminescu’s poetry is perfusing
45 The Concert in the Meadow, comprising certain suavities such as the comparison of the nightinghale song with diamonds sliding on angels’ harps carries a false idea (reassumed later on by D. Anghel): the personification of flowers in the style of J.J. Grandville’s illustrations for Les fleurs animées by Alph. Karr and others. (G. Călinescu, Istoria literaturii române de la origini până în prezent [The History of Romanian Literature from Its Origins up to the Present], Bucharest, Minerva, 1985, p.302). 46 Vasile Vasile, De la muzica firii și a sufletului la muzica sferelor. Muzica în viața și creația lui Eminescu [From the Inner Music to the Music of Spheres. Music in the Life and Creation of Eminescu], Bucharest, Editura Petrion, p.3. 47 A steppe plain in the south-eastern Romania, bounded on the south and east by the Danube, and in the north by the Buzău and Călmățui rivers. It makes up much of the eastern part of the Wallachian Plain. The region is known for its black soil and a rich humus, and is mostly a cereal-growing area. 48 See further literature on the topic: Adriana Peicu-Moldovan, Eminescu și liedul românesc [Eminescu and the Romanian Lied], Bucharest, Editura Muzicală, 1977; Letiția Constantin, Eminescu muzical: partituri aflate în Colecțiile Speciale ale BNR [Musical Eminescu: Scores from the Special Collections of Romanian National Bank]. In: Conferințele Bibliotecii ASTRA [Conferences of ASTRA Library], nr.144/ 2011. 49 Translation of Meaning.
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with references to musical instruments, among which most frequent are: the alpenhorn, the horn, the whistle, the monastery bell, the lyre, the harp and other symbol-instruments. The loads of scores (approximately one hundred50) based on Eminescu’s poems stand for their ease to be accompanied by music. The issue here is that Eminescu’s poetry is a sort of music in itself, to which any other melody is nothing but an addition, a duplication of the intrinsic music of the verse. Or, as Garabet Ibrăileanu puts it, Eminescu’s poetry is music both in form and content. Thus, it needs no other melody51.The outcome of superposing the two ‘scores’ is a multi-tonalism or multi-modalism – as the case – thus, the only music able to sound harmonically might be that which adds some charm to the verse. Eminescu’s poems depict realms of longing, of dreaming and harmony: ‘… Hear the horn in his longing / Its sweet sound, its bitter sound / Its gentle echo propagating / Dispersed among you all / Quieter, quieter / Further, further…’ (The Story of the Linden52)or: ‘As a boy, I used to wander in the forests / And often laid by the source, / My right arm under my head / To listen the delicate murmur of water; / A smooth rustle came from the trees’ branches / And a sweet scent enticed me / So I stayed there for many nights / Gently swung by the waves’ ringing.’ (As a Boy, I Used to Wander in the Forests53). Strong intersections between music and poetry are also to be found in the lyric of symbolist poets, led by Paul Verlaine’s watchword: ‘De la musique avant toute chose’ (Art poétique54). These ones are impassioned with autumnal melancholies, obsessed with the colours of some musical instruments enabling
50 A short list based on the most renowned scores based on Eminescu’s poems: Pe lângă plopii fără soț [Nearby the Solitary Poples], Sara pe deal [Evening on the Hilltop], Mai am un singur dor [My Last Longing], Codrule, codruțule [Dear Forest, Friend of Mine], Somnoroase păsărele [Sleepy Little Birds](Tudor Flondor), Trei valsuri pe versuri de Eminescu [Three Valses on Eminescu’s Verses] (Vasile Timiș), Patru Madrigale... [Four Madrigals] (Paul Constantinescu), Patru liduri de Gheorghe Dima [Four Lieds by Gheorghe Dima] (Dorința [The Desire], De ce nu-mi vii [Why Don’t You Come to Me], Peste vârfuri [Over the Hilltops], Și daca ramuri bat în geam [When Branches Hit the Windowpane], Somnoroase păsărele [Sleepy Little Birds]), Mihail Jora (Afară-i toamnă [Autumn], Și dacă [What if…], La steaua [To This Star], Peste vârfuri [Over the Hilltops], Ce stă vântul să tot bată [Why the Wind Is About To Blow]), Lucreafărul, theatrical poem, choirand orchestra by Alexandru Zirra. 51 G. Ibrăileanu, Mihai Eminescu – studii și articole [Mihai Eminescu – Studies and Articles], edition by Mihai Drăgan, Iași, Junimea, 1974, p.121. 52 As this is an approximate translation, it cannot keep the said musicality of Eminescu’s verse. For a professional translation of the poet’s works, see Poems & Prose of Mihai Eminescu, edited by The Center for Romanian Studies, Veritas Publishing, 2000 (with a study of the life and work of Eminescu by Kurt W. Treptow). 53 Translate of Meaning. 54 G. Călinescu, op. cit.
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them to express their melancholic states of mind: the piano, the violin, the whistle, the harmonica or the harp. In this respect, Ion Minulescu stands as an emblematic personality, searching to extinguish his great inner vibrations by means of artistic humour and contrast, thus employing rememberable aesthetic means, marks of true talent: ‘In your honour / The craziest and most beautiful of all the girls / I will write three odes / Three romances / Three elegies / And three sonatas’ … (Odelette55), or: ‘We have met in the same place where yesteryear / Manon Lescaut and Des Grieux fell in love, / During an autumn sunset, as a colourful symphony / Of violet, / Of white, / Of pink / And blue’ (Romance without music56). Music and colour also intertwine in order to boost the word in other Romanian symbolist poets’ creation: Ștefan Petică, Iuliu Săvescu, Dimitrie Anghel, N. Davidescu, Eugeniu Ștefănescu-Est, Al. T. Stamatiad, Emil Isac, Elena Farago, Mihai Cruceanu, and, especially, George Bacovia (‘Violet autumn sunset… /In the background, the silhouettes of two poplars fade in: / As if they were some apostles in violet cloaks – / The whole city turns violet’ (Violet Sunset57). Or: ‘It snowed abundantly and sadly: late it was / When I was stopped on my way by the piano sound coming from the window; / And I cried in front of the windowpane, and I was enlaced by delirium’ (Funeral March58).
Conclusions This study aimed to put forward that the intersection of arts is to be traced both in form and content. A painting can be described by its harmony, rhythm and balance of nuances, while a score can be inspired by the realm of pastoral landscapes, by an exhibition of paintings, by the charm of legends, by poetical or pictorial works, the outcome consisting of various programmatic aspects. The intersection of arts is conditioned by poets’ affinity to music and by the musicians’ affinity to poetry. There is no ‘forbidden fruit’ involved in this exchange, but the sharing of some complementary states of mind which come together through the two arts: emotion, lyricism, rhythm, harmony, colour etc. Religious as well as secular Antiquity show that music and poetry of grand masterpieces had a simultaneous birth: the Psalms of King David used to be sung, the Illyad and the Odyssey originated as epical poems, Byzantine religious chants and their lyrics were composed at the same time by the melodist. Presenting separately the two arts generates limits easy to trace.
55 Translate of Meaning. 56 Translation of Meaning. 57Translation of Meaning. 58 Translation of Meaning.
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Poetry or prose, no matter how detailed in their descriptions, are to touch mostly the rationality, the intellect, while music, although it relies mostly on a language of emotions, will never be able to fully depict reality or its author’s intentions in the absence of a textual reference. In this respect, it was mentioned in this study that programmatic music needs at least a title. The marriage of words and music gives birth to most complex messages and feelings: religious, heroic, despotic, melancholic, demonic, of hatred, of love, of alienation etc. It is known that Bach avoided the opera, as he considered it an almost ‘anti-musical’ genre, because the musical message was much altered by the presentation on stage59. The traditional aim to keep music in a state of purity, far from syncretic elements, was replaced by the audiences’ desire to enjoy the artistic act synaesthesic. Hybridization as the encounter of two media is a moment of truth and revelation, originating new forms60. The modern musician will be enticed to turn his attention to visual artistic aspects, the outcome being an audio-visual syncretism prone to impose a reshaping of the composer’s musical thought and an update to new challenges and exigencies61. Last, but not least, music from anywhere and from all times will be at hand for the society of the future by means of the digital revolution and the development of nanotechnologies62. Dan Dediu cites two American researchers – David Kusekși Gerd Leonhard – thus considering that the future of music will evince as a central feature the abundance of information and, implicitly, an urge to operate a selection based on preference. As well as that, the future is prone to bring about the instantaneity of information, as well as its mobility. We will no more wait for music to reach us on traditional channels, as mobile phones and Smartphone technologies are already able to connect us to any concert worldwide. And other challenges are yet to come, as no one can predict with certainty what the future will bring about.
59 George Bălan, Misterul Bach [Bach. A Mistery], București, Florile dalbe, 1997, p.287. 60 Marshall McLuhan, Texte esențiale [The Essential Mc Luhan], Bucharest, Nemira, 2006. 61 Cătălin Crețu, De la sunetul sinus la anatomia umbrei-perspective tehnologice în muzica nouă [From the Sound Sine to The Anatomy of the Technological Shadow-Perspective in New Music], Bucharest, Editura UNMB, 2015, p.108-109. 62 Dan Dediu, Cei 9 „i” sau cum compunem [The 9 ‘i’ or How to Compose Music], Editura Didactică și Pedagogică, R.A., p.9-10.
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ANNEXES
Board 1
Jesus’ Entry into Jerusalem (Tretyakov Gallery, 15th century, according to the School of Novograd)63
63 http://lampada.in.ua/wp-content/uploads/2011/07/image0012.jpg (accessed on 20.02. 2018) https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/d/d0/Entry_into_Jerusalem_ %28Annunciation_Cathedral_in_Moscow%29.jpg (accessed on 20.02.2018)
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Board 2
The Holy Trinity by Andrei Rublev64
64 https://www.google.com/culturalinstitute/beta/asset/holy-trinity-troitsa/xAHfUdaiKn8EBA (accessed on 20.02.2018) https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/0/0b/Angelsatmamre-trinity-rublev-1410.jpg (accessed on 20.02.2018)
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Titian: The Worship of Venus 65
65 https://www.google.com/culturalinstitute/beta/asset/worship-of-venus/IAHuqzg-yAhLtg (accessed on 20.02.2018) https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/1/1a/Ofrenda_a_Venus.jpg/ 300px-Ofrenda_a_Venus.jpg (accessed on 20.02.2018).
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REFERENCES
*** Dicționar de termeni muzicali [Dictionary of Musical Terms], Editura Științifică și Enciclopedică, Bucharest, 1984. Bălan, George, Misterul Bach [Bach. A Mistery], București, Florile dalbe, 1997. Bughici, Dumitru, Dicționar de forme și genuri muzicale [Dictionary of Musical Forms and Genres], Editura Muzicală, Bucharest, 1979. Bunge, Father Gabriel, Icoana Sfintei Treimi a Cuviosului Andrei Rubliov [The Icon of the Holy Trinity of the Devout Andrei Rublev], Editura Deisis, Sibiu, 1996, Preface by deacon Ioan I. Ică Jr. Călinescu, George, Istoria literaturii române de la origini până în prezent [The History of Romanian Literature from Its Origins up to the Present], Bucharest, Minerva, 1985. Constantin, Letiția, Eminescu muzical: partituri aflate în Colecțiile Speciale ale BNR [Musical Eminescu: Scores from the Special Collections of Romanian National Bank]. In: Conferințele Bibliotecii ASTRA [Conferences of ASTRA Library]. Crețu, Cătălin, De la sunetul sinus la anatomia umbrei-perspective tehnologice în muzica nouă [From the Sound Sine to The Anatomy of the Technological Shadow-Perspective in New Music], Bucharest, Editura UNMB, 2015. Cuclin, Dimitrie, Tratat de forme muzicale [Treaty on Musical Forms], Tipografia Bucovina, 1934. Dediu, Dan, Cei 9 „i” sau cum compunem [The 9 ‘i’ or How to Compose Music], Editura Didactică și Pedagogică, R.A. Denizeau, Gérard, Să înțelegem și să identificăm genurile muzicale [Let’s Understand and Identify Musical Genres], Editura Meridiane, Larousse (translation by Cristina Popescu). Francoise-Sappey, Brigitte, Istoria muzicii în Europa [History of Music in Europe], translated from French by Ileana Littera, Grafoart. Iliuț, Vasile, De la Wagner la contemporani (Volumul III) [From Wagner to Our Contemporaries (3rd volume)], Editura Muzicală, Bucharest. Leahu, Alexandru, Coloristica muzicală și interferențe cu artele vizuale și cu sugestia poetică [Musical Colour Palettes and Intersections with Visual Arts and Poetical Suggestion], Publishing House of the National University of Music, Bucharest, 2012. Măniuț, Petruța, Tratat de forme muzicale [Treaty on Musical Forms], Editura Universității Ttansilvania, Brașov, 2008. McLuhan, Marshall, Texte esențiale [The Essential Texts], Bucharest, Nemira, 2006. Merișescu, Gheorghe, Istoria muzicii universale [History of Universal Music], Conservatorul de Muzică ‘Gh. Dima’ – Cluj, Bucharest, 1968. Mociulschi, Adrian Leonard, Artă și comunicare [Art and Communication], Bucharest, Curtea Veche Publishing, 2013.
162 INTERSECTIONS OF ARTS. STRUCTURAL AND LANGUAGE ANALOGIES
Monea, Costin, Antologie de literatură, muzică și arte plastice [Antology of Literature, Music and Fine Arts], Library of Romanian Academy, n.d. Niculescu, Ștefan, Reflecții despre muzică [Reflections On Music], Editura Muzicală, Bucharest, 1980. Papu, Edgar, Despre stiluri [On Styles], Bucharest, Editura Eminescu, 1986. Peicu-Moldovan, Adriana, Eminescu și liedul românesc [Eminescu and the Romanian Lied], Bucharest, Editura Muzicală, 1977. Sandu-Dediu, Valentina, Octave Paralele [Parallel Octaves], Bucharest, Humanitas, 2014. Soare, Tiberiu, Nouă povești muzicale. Transcrierea conferințelor din seria „Vorbe despre muzică și muzicieni” organizate de Fundația Calea Victoriei și dirijorul Tiberiu Soare [Nine Musical Stories. Transcriptions of Conferences from the Series ‘Talks on Music and Musicians’, organised by Calea Victoriei Foundation and Conductor Tiberiu Soare]. Stoichiță, Victor Ieronim, Cum se savurează un tablou și alte studii de istoria artei [How to Taste a Painting and Other Studies on the History of Art], Bucharest, Humanitas, f.a. Tarabukin, Nikolai M., Sensul icoanei [The Sense of the Icon], Editura Sophia, Bucharest, 2015. Teodorescu-Ciocănea, Livia, Tratat de forme și analize muzicale [Treaty on Musical Forms and Analysis], Editura Muzicală, 2005. Timaru, Valentin, Analiza muzicală între conștiința de gen și conștiința de formă [Musical Analysis Between Genre and Form Awareness], Editura Universității din Oradea, 2003. Timaru, Valentin, Stilistică muzicală (volumul I) [Musical Stylistics (1st volume)], 2nd edition, Media-Musica, Cluj-Napoca, 2014. Vasile, Vasile, De la muzica firii și a sufletului la muzica sferelor. Muzica în viața și creația lui Eminescu [From the music of temper and of soul to the music of spheres. The Music in Eminescu's Life and Creation], Editura Petrion, Bucharest, f.a.
Pictures:
Picture 1 http://lampada.in.ua/wp-content/uploads/2011/07/image0012.jpg (accessed on 20.02.2018) https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/d/d0/Entry_into_Jerusalem_ %28Annunciation_Cathedral_in_Moscow%29.jpg (accessed on 20.02.2018)
Picture 2 https://www.google.com/culturalinstitute/beta/asset/holy-trinity- troitsa/xAHfUdaiKn8EBA (accessed on 20.02.2018) https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/0/0b/Angelsatmamre-trinity- rublev-1410.jpg (accessed on 20.02.2018)
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Picture 3 https://www.google.com/culturalinstitute/beta/asset/worship-of-venus/IAHuqzg- yAhLtg (accessed on 20.02.2018) https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/1/1a/Ofrenda_a_Venus.jpg/ 300px-Ofrenda_a_Venus.jpg (accessed on 20.02.2018).
164 STUDIA UBB MUSICA, LXIII, 2, 2018 (p. 165 – 186) (RECOMMENDED CITATION) DOI:10.24193/subbmusica.2018.2.13
THE DEVELOPMENT AND PERIODS OF EDVARD GRIEG’S ORCHESTRAL STYLE
RYTIS URNIEŽIUS1
SUMMARY. Edvard Grieg considered the orchestration of his compositions as a very important means of creative expression. In spite of its seemingly simple character, Grieg’s orchestral style is colourful and versatile. It is based on full concordance of the orchestral means with the other elements of composer’s music. Grieg began with the orchestral style based on firmly established traditions and later deviated towards more colourful and refined way of scoring which suited best for the specific musical images of his creations. The effectiveness of Grieg’s orchestration lies first of all in properly chosen and proportionally distributed roles of the orchestral sections and individual timbres. The author of this article made an attempt to establish the approximate periods of Grieg’s orchestration style and to introduce their main traits. Relying on the analysis carried out in this article, it was possible to discern four periods of Grieg’s orchestration style development. The boundaries of these periods are approximate and based on their predominant orchestration features.
Keywords: Edvard Grieg, orchestra, orchestration, periods.
Music by Edvard Grieg (1843–1907) is widespread and popular world- wide. It might appear that his music has already been comprehensively examined, analysed and does not hide any unrevealed aspects. The works by Erling Dahl, Daniel M. Grimley, Bjarne Kortsen, Georgia Volioti and others elucidated various aspects of Grieg’s music (traits of his melodies and harmony, specificity of the incidental music, influences by other composers on Grieg and Grieg’s influence on later composers, the links of Grieg’s works with Norwegian
1 Doctor of Humanities (Musicology); Professor at Šiauliai University, Lithuania. E-mail: [email protected].
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folk music, etc.)2. The monograph by Finn Benestad and Dag Schjelderup- Ebbe3, also the collections of Grieg’s letters, diaries and publications edited by Finn Benestad and translated into English by William H. Halverson4 are essential sources of information concerning the composer’s life and creation. However orchestration is the element of Grieg’s music which attracts less attention of the researchers than his harmony or thematic material. Meanwhile, in spite of its seemingly simple character, Grieg’s orchestration is colourful, expressive and closely associated with his melodies, harmony, and texture. Therefore, it can be presumed that this subject deserves more attention of the researchers5. Many direct remarks and allusions in Grieg’s letters show that the composer regarded the orchestration as one of the most important elements of creative expression. These remarks disclose the composer’s sensitivity to timbre, constant anxiety about the proper orchestral embodying of his creations, attention to the subtle details of performance, even doubts and lack of self-confidence in the orchestration knowledge. In the length of time the composer structured his own “timbre dictionary” which ultimately corresponds to the general character of his music. Grieg adapted the elements of this dictionary in different musical contexts ingeniously, yet he was not fond of outwardly spectacular orchestral effects. Therefore Adam Carse’s statement that Grieg’s orchestration is reminiscent of the work of “a child selecting colours from the paint box when colouring a given outline drawing”6 claimed in The History of Orchestration (1925) seems not well-grounded. Grieg’s orchestral style changed as time passed, so it is impossible to speak about it as a solid, all-in-one phenomenon. Yet the analysis of
2 For instance, see publications by these authors: Dahl, Erling, My Grieg. A Personal Introduction to His Life and Music, Edvard Grieg Museum, Bergen, 2014; Grimley, Daniel M., Grieg: Music, Landscape and Norwegian Identity, The Boydell Press, Woodbridge, 2006; Kortsen, Bjarne. Grieg’s String Quartet and Robert Heckman, in: Music & Letters, 49, no. 1, 1968, pp. 21- 28; Volioti, Georgia, Reinventing Grieg’s Folk Modernism: An Empirical Investigation of the Performance of the Slåtter, Op. 72, No. 2, in: Journal of Musicological Research, 31, no. 4, 2012, pp. 262-296. 3 Benestad, Fin; Schjelderup-Ebbe, Dag, Edvard Grieg: The Man and the Artist, University of Nebraska Press, Lincoln and London, 1988. 4 Benestad, Finn; Halverson, William H. (ed.), Edvard Grieg: Letters to Colleagues and Friends, Peer Gynt Press, Columbus, 2000. 5 The published conference presentation by Bjarte Engeset should be mentioned as a prominent attempt to investigate Grieg‘s orchestral style, see: Engeset, Bjarte, Edvard Grieg’s Orchestral Style, presentation at the Grieg Conference in Copenhagen August 13, 2011, pp. 1-73. 6 Carse, Adam, The History of Orchestration, Dover Publications, New York, 1964, p. 310.
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Grieg’s orchestral works reveals that several distinct periods of orchestration style can be distinguished within his creative biography. The aim of this article is to establish these periods and to reveal their main features.
Edvard Grieg’s orchestral compositions In order to establish Grieg’s orchestration style periods, the whole variety of his compositions for orchestra should be considered. The list of Grieg’s compositions for orchestras of various types is presented in Table 1. It encompasses all orchestral works including purely instrumental creations, incidental music, and compositions for voices with orchestra. Grieg’s orchestral works can be divided into several categories. This division comes in useful to classify Grieg’s compositions according to the specificity of their orchestral style. The first category encompasses the concert compositions for the symphony orchestra. These works are written for the orchestra which usually contain double woodwind instruments section and full or reduced brass section. The compositions of this category are: Symphony in C minor, EG 119; Overture In Autumn, Op. 11; Piano concerto in A minor, Op. 16; Old Norwegian Melody with Variations, op. 51; Symphonic Dances, Op. 64; and Lyric Suite – four orchestrated Lyric Pieces from album V, Op. 54. Incidental music works make up the second category. It contains music for Bjørnson’s drama Sigurd Jorsalfar, Op. 22; Ibsen’s drama Peer Gynt, Op. 23; and the scenes from the unfinished opera Olav Trygvason, Op. 50. Many movements of these creations include vocal parts. The third category includes the compositions for the string orchestra: Two Elegiac Melodies; Op. 34; Suite From Holberg’s Time, Op. 40; Two Melodies for string orchestra, Op. 53; Two Nordic Melodies for string orchestra, Op. 63; Two Lyric Pieces from album IX, Op. 68. The character of the compositions for the string orchestra is close to Grieg’s vocal pieces (some of these creations are arrangements of earlier created songs). The orchestration of cantata The Mountain Thrall, Op. 32 for baritone, two horns and strings is related to this category.
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Table 1. Compositions for orchestra by Edvard Grieg
The list does not contain Norwegian Dances, Op. 35 orchestrated by Hans Sitt7 and Funeral March for Rikard Nordraak composed for piano in 1866 and scored for the wind band the next year (sources: Benestad 2000; Benestad 2001; Dahl 2007).
Name of the Created Orchestrated8 Other versions composition and editions Symphony in C minor, 1864 EG 119 Overture In Autumn, 1866 1887 The initial Op. 11 orchestration of 1866 did not survive. Piano Concerto in A 1868 Orchestration was minor, edited several Op. 16 times, the last version in 1907 At the Southern 1871 Convent, Op. 20 Sigurd Jorsalfar, Op. 22. 1872 Incidental music Incidental music to edited in 1903. Bjørnson’s drama Suite (3 move- ments), Op. 56, 1892 Peer Gynt, Op. 23. 1875 New orchestral Incidental music to edition in1885. Ibsen’s drama Last time edited in 1907. 1st suite for orches- tra, Op. 46, 1888. 2nd suite for orchestra, Op. 55, 1892 Land Sighting, Op. 31 Brass The overall for baritone, male ensemble accompaniment chorus and orchestra used in the with symphony last episode, orchestra version, 1872 1881
7 Norwegian Dances were orchestrated also by Robert Henriques, however the version later created by Hans Sitt is performed most often. 8 The dates in the third column are indicated when the original work was initially composed not for orchestra and orchestrated later. The dates of the works orchestrated immediately after the creating of piano version coincide with the date of their creation (second column).
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Name of the Created Orchestrated8 Other versions composition and editions The Mountain Thrall, 1878 Op. 32 for baritone, strings and two horns Two Elegiac Melodies, 1880*9 Op. 34. for string orchestra From Holberg’s Time, 1884 String Op. 40 orchestra, 1885 Bergliot, Op. 42, 1871 1885 Melodrama Scenes from unfinished 1873 1888 opera Olaf Trygvason, Op. 50 Old Norwegian Melody 1890 Final version with Variations, Op. 51 (two pianos) 190510 Two Melodies for string 1890* orchestra, Op. 53 Six Songs with 1894–1895* Orchestra, EG 177 Two Nordic Melodies, 1895* Op. 63 for string orchestra Symphonic Dances, Op. 1898 64 Two Lyric Pieces for Lyric Pieces 1899 string orchestra from IX, 1898– Op. 68 1899 Lyric Suite Lyric Pieces Anton Seidl, New orchestration V, Op. 54, 1894 by Grieg, 1904– 1891 190511.
9 The asterisk marks the date when the orchestral cycle was created: the predecessors of these cycles (piano pieces or songs from various opuses) were composed earlier in different periods. 10 The date 1905 is doubtful because in a letter to Gerhard Schjelderup (the 11th of May, 1904) Grieg wrote that “The orchestral score now exists in manuscript and was performed as an orchestral piece ... this winter. Hopefully it will soon be published“ (Benestad; Halverson, Edvard Grieg, p. 610). If this information is correct then Variations were finished in 1904. Probably 1905 is the date of its publishing. 11 The new version of the Suite was completed in 1904 and contained Gangar, Notturno, March of Trolls and Bell Ringing. In 1905 the piece The Sound of the Bells was replaced with the Shepherd’s Boy.
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Grieg’s Cantatas with orchestra At the Southern Convent, Op. 20; Land Sighting, Op. 31; The Mountain Thrall, Op. 32; and (conditionally) melodrama Bergliot, Op. 42 could be separated into discrete category, although a relationship to other categories can be observed: from the point of orchestration Op. 32 could be attributed to the category of compositions for the string orchestra, meanwhile Opp. 20, 31 and especially Op. 42 contain features typical of Grieg’s incidental music. The cycle Six Songs with Orchestra, EG 177 cannot be attributed to one particular category as a whole, because accompaniments of these songs are scored for different instrumentations. Popular and frequently performed symphonic suites of music from Sigurd Jorsalfar, Op. 56 and Peer Gynt, Opp. 46 and 55 could be conditionally attributed to the first category, however their obvious programmatic content and pictorial musical images are closely connected with their initial destination, therefore they are closer to the incidental music category.
The main features of Grieg’s orchestra and its sections
The instrumentation of Grieg’s orchestra was obviously influenced by Leipzig school representatives (Mendelssohn, Schumann, Gade). Laura Tunbridge observed that “throughout his career, Schumann wrote for a standard classical orchestra with paired woodwinds, paired horns and trumpets, three trombones, timpani, and five part strings. The bass end was sometimes bolstered by ophicleide <…> or its descendant the tuba <…>. Extra instruments—piccolo, harp or triangle—were included for particular illustrative effects“12. Schumann had a significant influence upon Grieg in many aspects, and the structure of the orchestra in both composers’ scores is also very similar with several minor differences. The same moderate attitude towards orchestral resources – “attachment to German Romanticism, in particular his allegiance to figures such as Felix Mendelssohn and Robert Schumann”13 – is found in the scores of Danish composer Niels Wilhelm Gade (1817–1890), who was Grieg’s tutor during his staying in Copenhagen after graduating Leipzig conservatoire. String section is undoubtedly the most important section in Grieg’s scores. The importance of string instruments is clearly manifested by his works for the string orchestra and predominance of strings in the symphonic creations. The composer lacked self-confidence in writing for the strings (especially
12 Tunbridge, Laura, Schumann’s Orchestration for Das Paradies Und Die Peri and the Szenen Aus Goethe’s Faust, in: American Choral Directors Association Journal, 51, 2010, p.7. 13 Celenza, Anna Harwell, Niels W. Gade: The Cosmopolitan Dane, in: Organists’ Review, XCIV.1, 2008, p. 33.
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violin) for many years and did his best to fill this gap14. Therefore, namely string parts in Grieg’s scores most obviously show the progress of his instrumental technique. The fundamental contrast of timbres in Grieg’s orchestral works is usually achieved by juxtaposing of string and woodwind instruments sections. The ingenious and colourful exploitation of different woodwind instruments is another peculiar feature of Grieg’s style. Grieg used only the main representatives of the double woodwind instruments section (piccolo flute is the only one exception). In several cases the quantity of woodwinds is diminished (e. g. Solveig’s Song from Peer Gynt, accompaniment for the song A Swan). Woodwind instruments are used in various ways. In early period Grieg used woodwinds mostly as a group (full or partial). In later period themes and their fragments are often exposed alternately by different woodwind instruments or their combinations (e. g. the introduction of the overture In Autumn, middle episode of At the Matching game from Sigurd Jorsalfar, numerous passages in Symphonic Dances, Lyric Suite). Often one of these instruments is treated as predominant and becomes a conveyer of “anonymous personification”: a timbre which is recognized by listener as anonymous though already acquainted character on the stage of musical action. In numerous “conversations” of woodwinds the theme begins in a part of a particular instrument, then it is passed to another woodwind instrument (or instruments), but at the end the first instrument appears to be predominant and the most important person of the action (e. g. the Symphonic Dance No 3). Such predominant role is often commissioned to the oboe, Grieg’s most beloved woodwind instrument. Dialogs and polylogues of the woodwinds are often generalized in a massive sound of strings by passing the theme to violins (e. g. central episode beginning with the rehearsal mark A in Notturno from the Lyric Suite). Such dialogic dramaturgy is most common in Grieg’s later creative period. Lengthy monologues of woodwinds also occur (of course, an oboe is their frequent implementer). The role of the brass instruments in Grieg’s compositions is much more temperate. The composer exploits them cautiously but ingeniously and in most cases purposefully. The usage of the horns is the most extensive
14 Surprisingly, woodwind and brass instruments are mentioned very seldom in Grieg’s letters and other literary legacy sources. On numerous occasions Grieg regretted that he could not learn the orchestration in Leipzig conservatoire; he especially complained that he cannot play violin (see: Benestad; Halverson, Edvard Grieg, p. 371). It shows that Grieg clearly understood the importance of cognition of this instrument and the string section of the orchestra in general. However Grieg never complained that he was unfamiliar with woodwind or with brass instruments. For the meantime we can only guess if Grieg considered wind instruments less worth to notice in comparison with strings, or he believed that his knowledge in this field is sufficient.
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and versatile, however all ways of their employment are traditional and without any extreme effects. In some non-standard instrumentation cases horns are the only representatives of brass: The Mountain Thrall is written for the string orchestra and two horns; the score of the introduction to the 3rd act of Peer Gynt include string orchestra and four horns. The orchestration of A Swan accompaniment also includes two horns alongside with strings, oboe, bassoon and harp. Grieg used valve horns and trumpets, but their treatment in a natural manner is frequent even in his last compositions. It is strange to see one and the same instrument used as natural and several bars later as undoubtedly chromatic. The treatment of horns as natural instruments is peculiar to background elements (at times their role is confined only to tonic and subdominant sounds), meanwhile horns are used as chromatic instruments both in accompaniment as full chords (isolated or in conjunction with other instruments) and in melodic passages. The solution of the dissonant chord of horns into a consonant chord of strings is found at the end of the Morning Mood from Peer Gynt. Stopped horns are almost always used as a peculiar colour; their sound often becomes a conjunction between different episodes of the piece (e. g. Ingrid’s Lament from Peer Gynt, the Symphonic Dances No 2 and 4). Mysterious sound of the stopped horns here creates impression of suspense and haunted expectation of the further musical action15. Comparing with horns, trumpets are used more reservedly: the role of trumpets is mostly limited to the background, except for several cases when they perform important melodic material (e. g. the middle section of the Symphonic Dance No. 1). Such economy for the “heavy brass” was most likely implanted during Grieg’s studies in Leipzig. Trumpets more often than horns are treated in an emphatically natural style: such parts are restricted with unisons, fifths, octaves and sometimes other intervals of the natural scale. Even in tutti chords trumpets are often treated as natural instruments while trombones and horns compound full harmony (the way in which the first tutti chord of the Piano Concerto is compounded). The episodes of trumpets fanfares and signals of brilliant, heroic, festive character are more peculiar to Grieg’s early period. Such episodes are typical of the incidental music written in collaboration with Bjørnson. The most conspicuous example of such kind of music is the popular Homage March from Sigurd Jorsalfar.
15 It is interesting to compare the usage of horns in Grieg’s scores with the scores by his contemporary composers. For example, Brahms also wrote parts of the horns in a manner of natural instruments, but he usually burdened them during the whole movement of the work and used for doubling one or another voice or layer of the texture. Often these parts are distributed disconnectedly, their voice-leading is sometimes weird, disorderly chromatic parts are followed by “empty” intervals in a natural style. Meanwhile the role of horns in Grieg’s scores is clearly defined in most cases.
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Grieg used horns and trumpets in several transposing keys, mostly in F and in E; trumpets are sometimes in C. Although short trumpets (in B, A, C) were already common at the end of the 19th century, many composers still used to write other kinds of transposing keys as well, so the shifts of the transpositions in Grieg’s works should be treated as rather typical of that period. Trombones with tuba were included into the scores of the incidental works (Olaf Trygvason, some episodes of Sigurd Jorsalfar and Peer Gynt), Landsighting, Symphony in C minor (movements 3 and 4), Overture In Autumn; melodrama Bergliot; Symphonic Dances Nos 1, 3 and 4; two movements of Lyric Suite and accompaniment to the song Henrik Wergeland. Trombones without tuba are used in Piano Concerto. Trombones sometimes are treated in “German” manner – as three different tessitura (alto, tenor, bass) instruments, sometimes they are considered as homogenous group in close harmony, sometimes they perform melodic elements in unison or octaves. Trombones are common in forte passages; however the melodious subsidiary theme in the 1st movement of the Piano Concerto is scored for the cellos piano accompanied by trombones in full four-part harmony (the horn used as a first voice). It is a pity that this means of expression can be found too seldom in Grieg’s scores (a two-bar episode from The Old Norwegian Melody with Variations, rehearsal mark 19 is another rare example). The treatment of tuba does not overstep the conventional role of bass. Thus it can be concluded that the instrumentations of Grieg’s orchestra are mostly standard. They do not differ from the orchestras used by most of his predecessors and contemporaries and little varied during his creative life. Non-standard instrumentations can be found mostly in Grieg’s incidental music and in orchestrated accompaniments to the songs; such instrumentations were used when the artistic images of the compositions called for them. Large orchestras of Wagner and Richard Strauss type remained beyond the scope of Grieg’s interests. Concerning the importance of the orchestral sections in Grieg‘s scores an obvious hierarchy of the orchestral groups can be observed. It is expedient to imagine a pyramid which base level is filled with the string section, the second level with the woodwinds section, and the top with the brass section.
Establishing the periods of Grieg’s orchestral style
The research of changes in Grieg’s orchestration style is aggravated by the fact that many of Grieg’s orchestral compositions were at least once revised, so it is problematic to trace which elements of the orchestration in these creations remained from the earlier periods and which were embedded
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later (see Table 1). Thus it is difficult to relate the style of one or another work only with the year in which it was created. But in spite of these difficulties it appeared possible to distinguish separate periods of Grieg’s creative life according to the traits peculiar to his orchestration style. In order to set the boundaries of Grieg’s orchestration periods, two aspects should be considered: a) the chronological order of the compositions, and b) the treatment of the orchestral resources. In Table 2 both aspects are presented. The timeline (horizontal aspect) shows the chronological sequence of the creations. Empty columns of the table indicate the year or several years interval during which no compositions for orchestra (or with orchestra) were created. All compositions are grouped into categories according to their genres and instrumentation type (vertical aspect). Sigurd Jorsalfar suite, Op. 56 (1892) and two Peer Gynt suites Op. 46 (1888) and Op. 55 (1892) are not included in the table: the changes of their orchestration are not significant enough to consider them as separate orchestral works grown away from their incidental music origin. The timeline reveals that Grieg composed his works for orchestra (or with orchestra) consistently during all his life. Orchestral creations appeared even during his last years when the deteriorating health did not allow the composer to be as prolific as he was earlier. The attraction of the orchestral expression apparently inspired Grieg to spend his precious productive time in creating orchestral scores. After the first purely symphonic works for the standard concert symphony orchestra Grieg made a significant break. A shift to dramatic, heroic and pictorial type of music determined the different approach to orchestra in the incidental music written in collaboration with Bjørnson and Ibsen. Two cantatas Opp. 20 (1871) and 31 (final orchestration in 1881), also later orchestrated melodrama Bergliot, Op. 42 (1885) and scenes from Olav Trygvason, Op. 50 (1888) have much in common with Grieg’s incidental music and should be largely attributed to the same artistic idiom. The Mountain Thrall, Op. 32 (1878) was a predecessor of the series of works for string orchestra – a specific and significant part of Grieg’s oeuvre. These compositions were created in time when Grieg felt himself more confident in writing for strings than earlier. In the last period of his life Grieg returned to the works for the full symphony orchestra (Symphonic Dances, final orchestral version of Old Norwegian Melody with Variations), however their orchestration is different from the orchestration of the symphonic music created in earlier periods. Four periods of Grieg’s orchestral style were distinguished and presented in Table 2. The boundaries of these periods are approximate and based on their predominant orchestration features.
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Table 2
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General characteristics of Grieg’s orchestration style periods Early symphonic period, 1864–1870. This period is the initial stage of Grieg’s orchestral style development. It includes Symphony in C minor, overture In Autumn (its initial orchestration did not remain), and Piano Concerto in A minor. Grieg began writing large orchestral compositions from the very beginning of his creative biography in spite of the lack of sufficient orchestration skills. Grieg regretted many times that he had acquired very little orchestration knowledge in Leipzig conservatoire16. Early orchestral compositions carry an obvious imprint of the orchestration style usually related to Leipzig conservatoire school stretching from Beethoven, developed by Mendelssohn, and partly by Schumann. This tradition also influenced early Romantic style (sometimes referred to as the Nordic style)17 of the Danish composers Johan Peter Emilius Hartmann and Niels Wilhelm Gade. The latter in turn had an impact on early Grieg. Apart from the positive qualities of this school (such as praiseworthy moderation of instruments usage), its certain imperfections can be indicated: an intense doubling of instrumental parts make the overall sound dense but often monochromatic, lacking distinct contrasts and diversity of colours. The usage of the woodwinds was temperate, horns and trumpets were often employed in a manner of the natural instruments even in time when chromatic brass instruments had already been invented. Grieg also treated orchestral resources fairly conventionally during the first period; meanwhile his individuality in the sphere of orchestration did not reveal itself in a full strength. Symphony in C minor, EG 119 (1864) was Grieg’s first serious attempt to create a significant symphonic work. After the first performance Grieg was satisfied with his symphony, but later he forbade its performing ever after18. Overture In Autumn, Op. 11 (1866) was sternly criticised by Gade, and as a result the first version of its orchestration did not survive. In the same year Grieg arranged the piece for piano four hands. The overture was once more orchestrated in 1887 therefore now existing orchestral version does not belong to the early period. Grieg was fond of this composition and included it into his concert programs many times; but certain imperfections of the work (real or sometimes maybe just assumed) made up an opinion that neither version for piano four hands nor the later version for orchestra
16 Benestad; Halverson, Edvard Grieg, p. 371; also: Grieg, Edvard, My First Success, in: Edvard Grieg. Diaries, Articles, Speeches, edited by Benestad, Finn; Halverson, William H., Peer Gynt Press, Columbus, 2001, p. 84. 17 See: Skyllstad, Kjell, Nordic Symphony. Grieg at the Crossroads, in: Muzikološski zbornik/ Musicological Annual, 39, No. 1-2, 2003, 213-219. 18 Concerning the reasons of such act and the subsequent history of the Symphony performances see: Benestad; Schjelderup-Ebbe, Edvard Grieg, pp. 54-57.
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is “convincingly written”19. Thus In Autumn did not become a significant and well-timed landmark in the development of Grieg’s orchestration. The place of the Piano Concerto, Op. 16 (1868) among Grieg’s orchestral works is ambiguous because of the score revisions. Thus, although Concerto is one of the earliest Grieg’s creations for orchestra, its final version should be regarded as a result of the multiplex changes and improvements which were performed from time to time until the end of the composer’s life20. On the other hand Grieg did not change the score to the extent which would allow attributing the overall orchestration style of the Concerto to one of the later periods. In this context, the comparison of the piano concertos written by Schumann and Grieg appears indicatory. Schumann’s Piano Concerto, Op. 54 (1845) is considered as a direct predecessor of Grieg’s Concerto. Both compositions have many common features: the key of A minor, an immediate entrance of the soloist after a short tutti chord of the orchestra, the character of the themes, incessant passing (attaca) from the 2nd to the 3rd movement, etc. The comparing of two orchestrations confirms this similarity: the strings section embodies the most of the music material (however the main theme is scored only for the woodwinds section); woodwinds are employed to perform melodic lines, while trumpets (in Grieg’s work also trombones) are used mostly in tutti forte. The core of early Schumann-influenced orchestration remained in the final version of Grieg’s concert even after afore-mentioned numerous improvements. Yet Grieg’s orchestra is more colourful and diverse in comparison with Schumann’s orchestra. Although in Grieg’s Concerto woodwinds play mostly in octaves and in mixed groups, some episodes of woodwinds solo modestly predict the future treatment of these instruments in Grieg’s later works. It appears that Grieg’s orchestral compositions of the first orchestration period are essentially unknown for the audience in their initial form: the Symphony, the only one creation which retained the original orchestration, is performed rather seldom (Grieg’s ban on its performing became disregarded in the course of time), the initial orchestration of In Autumn did not survive, whereas the Concerto is performed in a version which has been modified due to the numerous amendments, even though it retained the core features of the Grieg’s early style.
19 Benestad; Schjelderup-Ebbe, Edvard Grieg, p. 93. 20 One of the early versions was influenced by Franz Liszt and contained many stylistic features of Liszt’s orchestration. For instance, the subsidiary theme of the first movement which we know as played by cellos was assigned for trumpet (Benestad; Schjelderup-Ebbe, Edvard Grieg, p. 116). Later Grieg understood that such way of orchestration did not fit for the nature of his music.
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Incidental music period, 1871–1877. During the short but very important incidental music period Grieg created music for dramas, two cantatas, melodrama, and scenes for the unfinished opera. The significance of this period was reinforced by its repercussions in later years when some of these works were orchestrated or re-orchestrated. All Grieg’s orchestral works of this period were created in collaboration with the dramatists Bjørnstjerne Bjørnson and Henrik Ibsen. The modest style of the earlier period which was shaped in Leipzig conservatoire and under the influence of Niels Gade was replaced with the fresh means of expression inspired by the uplifted patriotic Bjørnson’s spirit and pictorial, sometimes even weird images of Ibsen’s Peer Gynt. Most likely Grieg’s orchestral style of this period was influenced by the acquaintance with the wider range of the orchestral scores by various composers. Music composed by Johan Svendsen impressed Grieg especially strongly. Most of the significant orchestral works by Svendsen had been created before the end of Grieg’s incidental music period (in particular his Symphony No. 1 was composed in 1867, Symphony No. 2 in 1874). In the essay Johan Svendsen’s Concert (1867) Grieg wrote: “His [Svendsen’s – R.U.] orchestral writing invites comparison with that of Scandinavia’s most eminent master of orchestration, Niels W. Gade, and it is interesting to observe how, with respect to the handling of the instruments, Svendsen’s principles go in the very opposite direction. Gade tries so far as possible to combine the various timbres so they blend into one big whole. Svendsen, on the other hand, deliberately separates the various groups or instruments, which mutually echo one another. The result is the generally mellow tone colours of Gade’s music and the sharp contrasts in Svendsen’s. That Svendsen uses a great variety of resources results, of course, from the fact that he belongs to a newer age”21. Grieg here diplomatically avoided direct criticism of his tutor’s orchestration: while looking at Gade’s scores one can see that the predominant doubling of instruments should inevitably lead to monotony of the sound. Meanwhile bright colours and vivid contrasts of Svendsen’s music appeared as the attributes of more advanced orchestration style. Heroic or festive brass fanfares which were characteristic for Grieg’s earlier orchestration period can be heard in his incidental music as well. For instance, the trumpet or horn signal which consists of a long note and subsequent 4 fast triplet upbeat ( /4 h.( e jjq | h) can be found in the Symphony, Concerto, Sigurd Jorsalfar and Olav Trygvason, Bergliot. Such signals almost totally
21 Grieg, Edvard, Johan Svendsen’s Concert, in: Edvard Grieg. Diaries, Articles, Speeches, edited by Benestad, Finn; Halverson, William H., Peer Gynt Press, Columbus, 2001, p. 282.
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disappeared from Grieg’s works of the later periods. On the other hand some typical features of Grieg’s future orchestration emerged during the incidental music period: melodious passages of cellos, occasionally injected sounds of stopped horns, etc. Colourful dialogs of woodwind instruments which were modestly displayed already in the first period can be also seen in the second period. Yet in general woodwinds are still more often exploited as a group. Dramatic and epic colouring is peculiar already to the first composition of this period (it is also the first common work with Bjørnson) At the Southern Convent, Op. 20 (1871). The most prominent result of the collaboration with Bjørnson was music for drama Sigurd Jorsalfar, Op. 22 (1872)22. Heroic and epic character of this music is emphasized with the help of quite extensively employed brass instruments, whereas in Grieg’s earlier and even later scores the role of brass is more temperate. Vocal parts are sometimes doubled with orchestral instruments. In some cases such doublings are excessive, as, for instance, in King’s Song where voice is doubled by octave of cellos and horn. Instrumental doubling of solo vocal parts almost disappeared in Grieg’s later scores. The scenes from the unfinished opera Olav Trygvason (1873), also based on text by Bjørnson, was the last composition of this epic and heroic layer of Grieg’s orchestration. Although these scenes were orchestrated much later (in 1888), their style is grounded on the similar dramatic and epic idiom. Conspicuous changes in Grieg’s orchestral style occurred in his music for Ibsen’s drama Peer Gynt, Op. 23 (1875). The character of Peer Gynt text significantly differs from the heroic texts of dramas and epic poems by Bjørnson, consequently the style of the music for this drama had to be different from the style of the previous compositions by Grieg (At the Southern Convent, Land Sighting, Sigurd Jorsalfar). Complicated psychology of the Peer Gynt characters, frequent changes of different places and circumstances, fantastic episodes determined the tone of Grieg’s music and the way of its orchestration. Specific theatrical effects which are inseparable from the action on the stage are numerous. Most often such style is peculiar to the movements which contain vocal parts. In his letter to Henry T. Finck (July 30, 1905) Grieg states that the character of music to Peer Gynt is emphatically theatrical and should be conceived in the context of action on the stage: “If you had an opportunity to attend one of these representations [theatre performances – R. U.] you would discover that it requires the stage performance to clearly bring out the musical intentions”23. Bjarte Engeset wrote that “[…] in the music for Peer
22 In later version of Sigurd Grieg supplemented the score with three extra movements, however they (except the 1st Interlude) were based on the previous musical material and only several episodes were re-orchestrated. 23 Benestad; Halverson, Edvard Grieg, p. 244.
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Gynt Grieg tended towards a quite bizarre, parodic and extreme style, described by himself as “non-music”. He thought of this as real theatre music needing to be connected to the text and the acting, asking performers to have a lot of courage in the characterizations. Grieg’s response to Ibsen’s poignant text is not at all only poetic. It’s creative, inventive and sometimes shocking”24. The orchestration of Peer Gynt was amended several times during the subsequent years. Grieg even added new episodes in later productions of the play. For instance, the music for the premier in Copenhagen (1886) included the Norwegian Dances Op. 35 orchestrated by Robert Henriques. It should be noted that two later composed suites of music to Peer Gynt contain less specific, not emphatically theatrical episodes. However, these works could be attributed to purely symphonic sphere only conditionally and reservedly: their artistic images and strong programmatic character is associated with Ibsen’s play and keep these suites close to their incidental parentage. “In the original version this music was carefully linked to the drama on the stage. When this music is removed from the theatrical setting and performed in the concert hall, however—as in the Peer Gynt suites—it obviously retains a programmatic flavour that is sometimes very strong”25. The pictorial imagery of the incidental music determined the specific means of the orchestration. Grieg inventively handled these means thus creating an atmosphere which likely changed the concept of the plays in minds of the spectators forever. On the other hand his incidental music did not have direct follows-up. A succeeding development of Grieg’s orchestral music revealed that Peer Gynt crested a short but very prominent period; yet it did not become a direct source of Grieg’s subsequent orchestral style. Only the orchestration of Bergliot in 1885 and Olav Trygvason scenes in 1888 might be conditionally considered as complements to this style branch. During a short gap from 1876 to 1877 Grieg produced no orchestral output except some amendments to Peer Gynt for the premier in Copenhagen (1876), so the year 1877 should be considered as the approximate end of his incidental music period.
String orchestra period, 1878–1895. The new period begins with the cantata The Mountain Thrall (1878) and ends with Two Nordic Melodies (1895). Works for the string orchestra dominate in this period; however the sub-title “Period of revision of the earlier works” could be added: Grieg orchestrated and revised some of his earlier created symphonic and incidental music pieces during this period. Peer Gynt and Sigurd Jorsalfar suites were created in the same period.
24 Engeset, Bjarte, Edvard Grieg’s Orchestral Style, p. 52. 25 Benestad; Schjelderup-Ebbe, Edvard Grieg, p. 399.
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The inception of this period goes back to 1877 when Grieg began to compose his String quartet in G minor Op. 27 which was completed in 1878. This composition, although not orchestral, is closely connected with the forthcoming string orchestra period. Grieg’s interest in string instruments and desire to use them in the best possible way was reflected in composer’s correspondence with German violinist Robert Heckmann. In his letters Grieg asked Heckmann for advice in many aspects of string technique26. The composing of the quartet presumably increased Grieg’s self-confidence in handling of string instruments and allowed to achieve an idiomatic way of writing for them. This in turn induced him to create compositions for the larger string ensemble. Some of Grieg’s compositions for the string orchestra are the arrangements of his own piano pieces or songs. Grieg obviously was fond of merging them together into two-part cycles, thus we know them “in pairs”: Two Elegiac Melodies, Op. 34 (1880); Two Melodies for String Orchestra, Op. 53 (1890); Two Nordic Melodies, Op. 63 (1895); Two Lyric Pieces from Op. 68 (1899). Apart from these four mini-cycles, The Mountain Thrall, Op. 32 (small cantata for strings, baritone solo and two horns, 1878) and two out of Six Songs with Orchestra, EG 177 (1895) should be mentioned. The largest scale composition for the string orchestra, the suite From Holberg’s Time (Holberg Suite), appeared almost in the middle of this period. It was composed for piano in 1884 and orchestrated instantly after in 1885. String orchestra episodes from Peer Gynt (Anitra’s Dance and The Death of Åse) also could be conditionally regarded as early manifestations of string orchestra period works however the programmatic nature and connection with the stage action make their style different from the general string orchestra period music style. String orchestra (and the string section of the symphony orchestra) was Grieg’s favourite tool of orchestral expression. It is likely that Grieg regarded string orchestra as a cardinally transformed piano with an extended techniques: not constricted with two hands of a pianist and able to produce continuous and melodious sound. His skill in employing string orchestra grew continuously year after year, thus the progress of Grieg’s mastery in writing for strings during his creative biography is conspicuous. As time passed, Grieg acquired deep knowledge of strings technique and was careful in all details of its application. While preparing for his concert in Paris in 1903, the composer knew that he would have only one rehearsal with orchestra, therefore he wrote to French conductor Édouard Colonne: “I would
26 See: Benestad; Halverson, Edvard Grieg, pp. 369-378; also: Kortsen, Bjarne, Grieg’s String Quartet and Robert Heckman, pp. 21-28.
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be very grateful if you would arrange to have my bowings marked in the orchestral parts and used in the preliminary rehearsals”27. The variety and expressive usage of strings articulation in Grieg’s later compositions leaves no doubt that desperate, deep-drawn complaint “Just think if I had been able to play the violin a little!!!”28, which was poured out in 1878 letter for Robert Heckman eventually lost its relevance. Grieg’s compositions are intended for the large mass of strings. According to Bjarte Engeset, “His string works were conceived for a large group of musicians, around 60, with the special fullness, fusion, power and depth of sound this brings”29. The preference of a large size orchestra is reflected in Grieg’s correspondence with the director of the Warsaw Philharmonic, Alexander Rajchmann, concerning Two Elegiac Melodies: “their discussion turned to the makeup of the string orchestra for the 22 April concert, which according to Rajchmann included fourteen violins I, ten violins II, eight violas, seven cellos, and seven contrabasses. Evidently, Grieg preferred a different distribution, for in his response on 20 March he added two each additional violin I, violin II, and viola, as well as one each additional cello and bass”30. Obviously, Grieg treated the string orchestra alike a string group of a large symphony orchestra. The 20th century “chamber” orchestra would not be the right medium to perform Grieg’s compositions for strings. The multiple dividing of parts is an especially peculiar trait of Grieg’s orchestration for strings. In most of his works (especially of the later period) the composer created many-storeyed divisi of voices, often doubled in octaves and filled musical vertical with the compound, lush, dense texture. The distribution of the music material is very diverse: from numerous intense tutti to fine and transparent episodes where only violins are divided into several parts (e.g. rehearsal mark B in The Last Spring from Two Elegiac Melodies). In many of his works Grieg used four separate staves for violins – two for the 1st and two for the 2nd part. If any part becomes unison, the composer often does not change over to the notation in one staff. It means that divisi there is a rule rather than a temporary deviation from the standard distribution of parts. Grieg did not divide strings in such a refined way as for instance Wagner did in his Prelude to Lohengrin. His aim was to reach an intense (or, on the contrary, transparent) many-voiced multi-layer of homogenous, moderately polyphonic and essentially mono-timbre texture.
27 Benestad; Halverson, Edvard Grieg, p. 202. 28 Benestad; Halverson, Edvard Grieg, p. 371. 29 Engeset, Edvard Grieg‘s Orchestral Style“, p. 3. 30 Quoted from: Kijas, Anna E., ‘A Suitable Soloist for My Piano Concerto’: Teresa Carreño as a Promoter of Edvard Grieg’s Music, in: Notes, 70, No. 1, 2013, p. 57.
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Other artistic devices are numerous. Sul ponticello eight-bar episode in the score of The Last Spring highly fits to convey the Nordic mood and “gives association of cool, spring light, more than the usual diabolic and dramatic associations”31. Duet of solo cellos in Sarabande is one the most expressive episodes of Holberg Suite. In the 4th movement (Air) of the same suite cellos perform a dramatic theme forte while other instruments accompany pianissimo thus reaching an extreme contrast between the layers of the texture. On the other hand tremolo, which is frequently used in dramatic and monumental symphonic episodes, is quite rare in the pure string music pieces (short passages in accompanying parts of The Mountain Thrall and Norwegian from Two Melodies). The later repercussions of the string orchestra period are the orchestration of Two Lyric Pieces from Op. 68 (1899) and the Shepherd’s Boy, the first movement of the Lyric Suite.
Late symphonic period, 1896–190732. During the last period of his life Grieg wrote just few orchestral works of a large scale. One of the reasons of such decrease of productivity undoubtedly was his weakening health. Percy Grainger remembered that “Later in life his invalidism prevented him from composing in large forms. “One cannot write symphonies and operas if one is limited to four hours of work a day”, he remarked sadly”33. In one of his last letters to Frants Beyer Grieg openly spoke about his “lack of productivity in recent years, which is a consequence of my physical misery”34. Nevertheless namely in his late period Grieg finally firmed up his attitude towards the usage of the orchestral resources and returned to the music for the full concert symphony orchestra. In 1895 he began to compose a piano four hands version of his most important symphonic creation – the Symphonic Dances, Op. 64 (1898). Their orchestration was completed in 1898. Also in 1895 the composer’s subtle genius revealed itself in finely scored Six Songs with Orchestra, EG 177 (1895), where different types of orchestras (string orchestra, full symphony orchestra, and intermediate non-standard
31 Engeset, Edvard Grieg‘s Orchestral Style, p. 26. In the orchestrated accompaniment to the song (Six Songs for Orchestra, 1894–1895) Grieg did not indicate sul ponticello in this episode. Apparently the vocal part was responsible for the reflection of all nuances of the melody and lyrics. 32 The word Late here does not emphasize composer’s older age but should be understood as the opposite of the Earlier symphonic period. In both cases the word Symphonic does not imply the genre of symphony (which Grieg did not write in his Late period) but an inclination of composing orchestral music for the full symphony orchestra rather than for string orchestra or theatre stage. 33 Grainger, Percy, Edvard Grieg: A Tribute, in: The Musical Times, 98, No. 1375, 1957, p. 482. 34 Benestad and Halverson, Edvard Grieg, p. 107.
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instrumentations) were used. It should be noted that except the Symphonic Dances all creations orchestrated in this period had been composed in earlier years. Thus the year 1895 was a transitional year between the previous period and the last orchestration period during which the new symphonic creations were conceived and embodied. The Symphonic Dances is a four movement composition in which Grieg’s orchestral style reached its climax. The orchestral resources in this work are exploited in a very colourful and flexible way. All orchestral tutti are powerful and bright. Orchestral sections and individual instruments are used according to the principles which Grieg elaborated during his creative biography. The interchanging of the woodwind instruments playing melody create colourful dialogs or polylogues of different instruments-characters which supplement each other and simultaneously create subtle contrasts. This individuality and versatility of pure timbres makes Grieg’s orchestration different from the style of his predecessors and contemporaries, for instance Brahms, who used woodwind instruments more often in pairs moving in parallel octaves, thirds or sixths. The outer sections (A) of the ternary A-B-A form of the 2nd Dance accumulate all the lyricism of oboe solos which depict nature idyll in many of Grieg’s earlier works. In the middle section of the 3rd Dance polyphonically combined melodies are embodied in subtle, soft but contrasting colours. The importance of brass instruments in the Symphonic Dances is increased; however the manner of their usage remains quite temperate: horns and especially trumpets in many episodes are still treated as natural instruments performing octaves and fifths. On the other hand the impressive mix of two unison trumpets, violins and piccolo flute in the stormy middle section of the 1st movement, impressive ascending triads of brass in the middle section of the 4th movement and some other episodes seem fresh, vivid, and pictorial. In the 4th movement trombones powerfully expose melody in the climatic episode. String section is treated especially diversely as a result of Grieg’s long experience of writing for the string orchestra. In general, the orchestration of the Symphonic Dances shows full maturity of the composer’s style in spite of some remained old-fashioned elements35. In 1905 Grieg completed orchestral versions of his earlier piano works: Old Norwegian melody with Variations, Op. 51 and Lyric Suite (four pieces from Op. 54, 1891). The orchestral style of the Old Norwegian melody is close to the Symphonic Dances and contains interesting and successful passages; however this work remains in the shade of other creations by Grieg for many years.
35 The peculiarities of the Symphonic Dances are analysed in more detail by the author of the current article in his publication: Urniežius, Rytis, Edvard Grieg‘s Symphonic Dances: The Symphonism of the ‘Drawing and Colour, in: Hudební Věda, 54 / 3, 2017, pp. 289-318.
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Four out of six movements of the Lyric Suite were orchestrated by Anton Seidl (1850–1898) in 1895. In 1904–1905 Grieg revised the score significantly changing Seidl’s conception36. The colourful orchestration of the Suite reflects its programmatic content. The Shepherd’s Boy (which Grieg included into the suite instead of initially chosen The Bell Ringing) was scored for strings and harp directly from the piano original without any influence of Seidl’s scoring. Generally, the Lyric Suite could be regarded as a concentration of the progressive features of Grieg’s orchestration style.
Generalisation The general survey of Grieg’s orchestration shows that he began with the style based on firmly established traditions and later deviated towards more colourful and refined way of scoring which suited best for the specific musical images of his creations. The means of orchestration used by Grieg do not include any substantially original, newly-established inventions in comparison with some of orchestral innovators. Yet numerous examples of fine orchestration in the works created by Grieg’s predecessors and contemporaries broadened his understanding of this art and induced to elaborate his own orchestration style avoiding any extremities. Each composition by Grieg is provided with the necessary constitution of the orchestra according to its artistic conception. It can be stated that certain originality can be found in seemingly unoriginal orchestration of Grieg’s music. This originality lies in properly chosen and proportionally distributed roles of the orchestral sections; each of the sections occupies its predestined place in the “pyramid” of hierarchy of functions and fully corresponds to the specificity of Grieg’s music. This “pyramid” consists of the string section as almost universal basis of the orchestral expression, the woodwinds section as an implementer of the colourful variety, and moderately exploited brass. Relying on the analysis carried out in this article, it was possible to discern four periods of Grieg’s orchestration style development: 1) the early symphonic period, 1864–1870; 2) the incidental music period, 1871–1877; 3) the string orchestra period (1878–1895); and 4) the late symphonic period, 1896– 1907. This periodization is of course approximate and cannot encompass the whole variety of Grieg’s orchestral style. Nevertheless it can be treated as a generalisation of this important side of composer’s creative legacy.
36 Engeset, Edvard Grieg‘s Orchestral Style, p. 29-35.
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REFERENCES
Benestad, Fin; Schjelderup-Ebbe, Dag, Edvard Grieg: The Man and the Artist, University of Nebraska Press, Lincoln and London, 1988. Benestad, Finn; Halverson, William H. (ed.), Edvard Grieg: Letters to Colleagues and Friends, Peer Gynt Press, Columbus, 2000. Carse, Adam, The History of Orchestration, Dover Publications, New York, 1964, p. 310. Celenza Anna Harwell, Niels W. Gade: The Cosmopolitan Dane, in: Organists’ Review, XCIV.1, 2008, pp. 33-35. Dahl, E. Erling, My Grieg. A Personal Introduction to His Life and Music, Edvard Grieg Museum, Bergen, 2014. Engeset, Bjarte, Edvard Grieg’s Orchestral Style, presentation at the Grieg Conference in Copenhagen August 13, 2011, pp. 1-73. Retrieved from http://www.griegsociety.org/filer/1624.pdf Grainger, Percy, Edvard Grieg: A Tribute, in: The Musical Times, 98, No. 1375, 1957, pp. 482–483. Grieg, Edvard, Johan Svendsen’s Concert, in: Edvard Grieg. Diaries, Articles, Speeches, edited by Benestad, Finn; Halverson, William H., Peer Gynt Press, Columbus, 2001, pp. 280–283. Grieg, Edvard, My First Success, in: Edvard Grieg. Diaries, Articles, Speeches, edited by Benestad, Finn; Halverson, William H., Peer Gynt Press, Columbus, 2001, pp. 67–89. Grimley, Daniel M., Grieg: Music, Landscape and Norwegian Identity, The Boydell Press, Woodbridge, 2006. Kijas, Anna E., ‘A Suitable Soloist for My Piano Concerto’: Teresa Carreño as a Promoter of Edvard Grieg’s Music, in: Notes, 70, No. 1, 2013, pp. 37–58. Kortsen, Bjarne. Grieg’s String Quartet and Robert Heckman, in: Music & Letters, 49, no. 1, 1968, pp. 21-28. Skyllstad, Kjell, Nordic Symphony. Grieg at the Crossroads, in: Muzikološski zbornik / Musicological Annual, 39, No. 1-2, 2003, pp. 107-114. Tunbridge Laura, Schumann’s Orchestration for Das Paradies Und Die Peri and the Szenen Aus Goethe’s Faust, in: American Choral Directors Association Journal, 51, 2010, pp. 6-17. Urniežius, Rytis, Edvard Grieg‘s Symphonic Dances: The Symphonism of the ‘Drawing and Colour, in: Hudební Věda, 54 / 3, 2017. Volioti, Georgia, Reinventing Grieg’s Folk Modernism: An Empirical Investigation of the Performance of the Slåtter, Op. 72, No. 2, in: Journal of Musicological Research, 31, no. 4, 2012, pp. 262-296.
186 STUDIA UBB MUSICA, LXIII, 2, 2018 (p. 187 – 204) (RECOMMENDED CITATION) DOI:10.24193/subbmusica.2018.2.14
THE ANONYMOUS EDUCATOR1
MIRELA MERCEAN-ŢÂRC2
SUMMARY. This paper aims to highlight the important role of the family and community in the process of educating children in the archaic Romanian village. The Anonymous Educator was represented by these two forums (family and community) which used to establish the typology of the behaviour, the moral, spiritual and artistic standards in the community, which the children, during the millennia, would learn empirically by participating in the daily events. This kind of natural, empirical education disappeared today, due to the disintegration of the structures of the traditional village. The lesson of the Anonymous Educator is a moral, spiritual one, a lesson which shapes strong consciences and perennial values. It can be a model for learning music by the songs specific to the spirituality of the children from diverse cultural areas, as well as a moral model for the contemporary society.
Keywords: Anonymous Educator, musical education, family and community, Romanian archaic village, folk songs.
At the end of the 19th century the discovery of the spiritual values of the folk-lore of the peoples led to an avalanche of research of the educational valences of this inexhaustible source. It is known the extraordinary afflux of some great educators and researchers as Titu Maiorescu, who in 1866, asked for “The introduction of the folk songs as study object in the curriculum”3 or of Spiru Haret, George Breazul, Mihail Sadoveanu, Constantin Brăiloiu. All these researched and established the primordial educational values of folk songs and plays of the children in the basis of the unity of thinking and feeling,
1 This study it’s a revised version of a previous published paper in Romanian, in the University of Oradea Annals- Music Fascicle review, 2010. 2 Associate Professor PhD, University of Oradea, Faculty of Music, Oradea, Romania. E-mail: [email protected] 3 Ligia Toma-Zoicaş, Pedagogia muzicii şi valorile folclorului (The Pedagogy of Music and the Values of Folklore) Ed. Muzicală, Bucureşti, 1986, p. 6. apud G. Breazul, „Educaţie şi instrucţie” (Education and Instruction)in Muzica românească de azi,(Romanian music today) review, 1939, p. 550.
187 MIRELA MERCEAN-TÂRC of a musical language proper for the native cultural area. A number of investigators, specialists in folklore and educators followed this path which was very clearly expressed by the German educator Georg Kerschensteiner: „The education of the individual is not possible but by those cultural goods whose spiritual structure is wholly or partially adequate to the structure of the psyche of the individual”4. It is about a golden age of educators made up, in addition the ones mentioned above, from famous people as Sabin Drăgoi, Grigore Posluşnicu, Gheorghe Petrescu, Liviu Comes, Ion Croitoru, Nelu Ionescu, Ion Saxu, Aurel Ivăşanu, Ligia Toma-Zoicaş. Many of these embrace the educational ideas of the European movement from the beginning of the 20th century, joining the great creators of educational systems, as Zoltán V Kodály, Carl Orff, Edgar Willems, etc., there were thus discovered and valued the rhythmic system of the children’s folklore, methods as scansion, there has been underlined the importance of the tunes with an ancestral modal structure, oligochordic, pentatonic, the hierarchic phases of learning of certain intervals based on the primordial intervals which characterize the songs from the children folklore, the third, the major second, the quart, also the psycho-pedagogical and aesthetic valences of the metaphors and the lively images from the songs and the games of the children’s folklore, the satisfying of the need of beauty, the creativity and the musicality of the children which receive such an education. It is about a whole world of a peculiar richness, linked organically to the values of the archaic, rural community, a world from which today pedagogy feeds itself in order to build generations and to develop harmoniously personalities, a world which only in the last century began to have schools and change its value orientations and which, for millennia, was led by a single anonymous educator, a presence whose moral, as well as coercive power accompanied the child, then the teenager and later, the young person from the childhood to the threshold of entering the world of the adults, rite of passage celebrated by the wedding. This presence, which we name the anonymous educator, was ensured by two constant educational factors: the family environment and the village community. The richness and the variety of the songs and games from the children folklore preserved and gathered till the middle of the last century testifies a peerless vitality and organic structure of the children with the psycho- physiological data of children of all ages. If until the age of 4 or 5, the family environment, especially the mother, shapes the taste and the repertoire of the child, after this age, the child will learn the social and the cultural conventions by itself, from siblings, playmates from the natural environment, from the community,
4 Apud. Ligia Toma Zoicaş, op. cit., p. 19.
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and will react according to his or her personality. Thus, the categories of songs and games existing in the children folk-lore testifies to the fact that the children were present at the manifestations of the village community, learning continually from the repertoire and the reactions of the adults, both from the predetermined festivals, and from the family, spontaneous feasts. In this paper we will analyses especially the direct role of the songs of the traditional family environment on the little children, songs reflecting the educational concerns of the family and of the village community. The first sonorous impression a little child integrates to his or her sensible perception, sensibly, directly by the maternal voice was the lullaby. The stylistic-literary structure of the repertoire of the lullaby was analyses, and revealed the existence of formulas with onomatopoeic character and function of soothing, a sonorous “cradle-swinging” which confirms the presence of the mother. In texts, the child is compared to the noblest creatures, a baby-deer, a young hawk, the diminutives ensuring the affectionate character of closeness and tenderness of the mother for a baby that is pampered: baby, babe, and cub. Some of the texts contain an in “vocation to certain animals or puns: “Come, catfish, put the baby to sleep; so, do you, catfish, lull it to sleep”. The antiquity of the cradling formula nani, nani5 (hush-a-by) is undeniable, considering the signalling of the name nenia, given to the songs by which the Roman mothers would put their children to sleep (in The Epistles of Horace, I, 1,62)”.
E.g. 1
Lullaby song6
The swung rhythmical structure in iambic, pyrrhic, trochaic or combined rhythmical formulas would ensure that monotony which would bring the sleep, and the sonorous material, especially a simple bi-tri-tetra-pentachord one signals the specific of some incantatory formulas, aiming to lead the child to the realm of dreams. The free forms testify to the antiquity of some
5 Dormi, dorminelmioseno/Il miocuorculla sera/ Fa la nina, nana, na. Vasile Alecsandri, apud S. Fl. Marian, in Naşterea la români (Birth seen by the Romanians), Editura Grai şi Suflet, Bucureşti, 1995. 6 C. Râpă, Teoria Superioară a Muzicii, vol. I: Sisteme tonale, (High Theory of Music-Tonal Systems), Ed. Media Musica, 2001, p 29, apud Emilia Comișel, Folclor muzical, p. 91.
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of the types and the strophic ones or the ones on singing melodies proper, hora or doina testify to the multitude of the possibilities the mother had to lead the baby into the euphony of the specific of the spoken and sung language. The role of the mothers in the appropriating of the first syllables and then, gradually of the coherent speaking is natural and is linked with the specific way of pampering, with the means of affectionate communication, with the games by which she, as well as the siblings or the father would initiate for fun, but for education, too. There are reports for this phase nursery rhymes with the counting of fingers or the play with the physiognomy of the child:
This one goes to the puppies, This one goes to the piggies, This – to bring sweet milk, This cry: “Don’t go!” This says: “Give me, too, for I am little!”7
Or: Chin-chinness/ Mouth-mouthness / Nose-nuzzleose/ Eyes eager eyes/ Forehead foreheadness / Jump in the hat”8.
E.g. 29
7 An equivalent would be: “This little piggy went to market”. 8 Emilia Comişel, Folclorul copiilor (Children’s folklore,) Editura Muzicală, Bucureşti, 1982, p. 27. 9 L. Toma Zoicas, op. cit., p. 59, apud Traian Mârza si colectivul, Folclor Muzical din zona Huedin, (Musical Folklore from Huedin County), 1978, p. 77.
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Even if there are preserved only scanned rhythmical formulas, there are sung variants, as well, as seen in the collection of the folk-lore investigator Nelu Ionescu, entitled Luci, soare, luci (Shine Sun, Shine!) no. 47610. The rhythmical swing of the child from one leg of the father or the elder brothers to the other is often noticed:
Wheel it Wheel the cart To the elders little Mary Little Mary is not at home Only the beautiful girl With earrings of snowdrops With necklace of nine silver pieces11.
There are rhymes which the mother tells the child before eating: “Polenta boiled in the hood/ Give it to the servant, so as not to run away!”12 The older girls learn from their mothers the specific way to speak and play with the little ones by transferring this affectionate language in their play with the dolls “as a prelude exercised for the nights of watch at the bed of their future descendants”13. If the child hit himself or herself,(or the dolls „hit”) it is sung: “White wool, black wool/ May God make (the pain) go away”14. E.g. 3
To the doll or to the pain15
Far from imitating the songs of the adults, the children only take over their gestures and produce, in the spirit of their own values, some unique creations, without counterfeiting.
10 Nelu Ionescu, Luci, soare, luci, (Shine sun, shine!), Editura Muzicală, Bucureşti, 1981, p. 88. 11 Apud S. Fl. Marian, op. cit., p. 217. 12 Idem. 13 Virgil Medan, Folclorul copiilor, (Children’s Folklore), the abstract of the Ph.D. thesis, p. 20. 14 Idem. 15 Nelu Ionescu Luci, soare, luci, (Shine sun, shine!), p 93, nr. 491 din satul Viișoara, comuna Tărgu Trotuș, judetul Bacău.
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The children transfer some of these ritual gestures to their invocations of the elements of nature: of the insects, animals and illnesses. The care and protection of the mother which she tries to provide to the child during the childhood illnesses have been manifested in the millennia are disenchantments which, originally, were magical-ritual acts, emerging from the awareness of the sacred. Mircea Eliade explains thus the existence of these cultural manifestations:
„By experiencing the sacred, the human spirit has caught the contradistinction between what is revealed as real, strong, rich and significant and what does not possess these qualities, i.e., the chaotic and dangerous flux of things, their random, meaningless appearances and disappearances”16.
Thus, the awareness that the mother can control illnesses by incantations would yield some productions to which the child assists appropriating the musicality of the lines, their rhythm, maybe the sonorous structure, and he or she transfers it to their inner world. There are reported incantations for the “evil eye”, for the cry of the child and for sleeplessness: “Oh, fire, little fire, here it is the sleep of my son, Give me the sleep of your son”17 or:
Good evening, forest, Take from my lad The weeping, grips, stretches, The pains and all the torments and restlessness, And provide with the rest and the growth of your trees To my lad 18.
There have been incantations for stomach pains, fever, fright, redness (possibly rubella), boils (the treatment is made up of garlic and ointments). The fever and such are cured both by incantations and by plants and ointments. All these are reflected in the invocations of the children to the sun, the rain, the snowfall, the rainbow, the fever, cramps, water in ears, “may the warts fall off”, but also to the snail, ant, cricket, ladybug, firefly, bee, frog, turkey, cock, hen, hawk, stork, duck, ringdove, hedgehog, etc.
16 Mircea Eliade, Nostalgia originilor (The Origin’s nostalgy), Editura Humanitas, Bucureşti, 1994, p. 7. 17 S. Fl. Marian, op. cit., p. 231. 18 Idem.
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E.g. 4
To fever19
My fever Goes on brooks He who takes it Will be run over by the evil illness.
E.g. 5
To quinsy20, being treated with salted grits
Quinsy, quinsy Very squeezy, Get out or I’ll kill you With the edge of the axe! When I fed them salted grits The quinsy retreated.
19 Nelu Ionescu, op. cit., p. 184, nr. 1038. 20 Nelu Ionescu, op. cit., p. 188, nr. 1057.
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E.g. 6
Invocation to the new moon against warts21
Moon, oh, new moon Urge the piglets To eat the warts! E.g. 7
Aphtae22
Star, star, Take the aphthae Off my tongue!
Meanwhile, these elements lost their initial magical ritual function and met the need of the child to communicate by rhythm, melody, gestures, to manifest his surplus of physical and psychological energy which it uses up intellectually and affectively in its artistic productions. These do not have just a utility for entertaining, but also an educational-didactic utility.
E.g. 8
21 Idem, p. 147, nr. 828. 22 Ibidem, pg. 147, nr. 830.
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New moon, new moon, Cut the bread in two And give us some, too! Give us health And pure thoughts.
E.g. 9
Invocation to the ladybug23
Bug, ladybug, Where you will fly, There will I marry.
The creativity of the child is manifested in the numberless tongue twisters, euphonic associations of syllables without any meaning, present in counting or riddles, songs with the function of entertaining. They are, actually, “necessities of rhythm and rhyme and a sonorous hierarchy (...) which only the ingenuous soul of the child can appreciate in its nuances to satisfy its need of beauty”24. Together with this organic need of beauty, Ovidiu Bârlea specifies as well “the acute sensitivity to the musicality of the language (...) the excitement produced by the phonic equilibrium of the syllables fit for a sonorous symmetries, apparently fortuitous, but, in fact, long chiseled: “Una mina dodumina / Trei iron piţigon / cozoricaViorica / yen pen pica”25or Unilică. Cicilică, CicipanăPăuileană, ElnicJelnic, OstamPintic, Siminic, Hîșîncâmp.
23 Virgil Medan, Folclorul copiilor, (Children’s Folklore), Cluj-Napoca, 1980, p. 154, nr. 185. 24 O. Bârlea, Poetica folclorică, (Ars Poetica of the folklore) Editura Univers, Bucureşti, 1979, p. 30. 25 Idem.
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E.g. 10
Numbers26
Unilic, cycilic, Cicipan, paulian, Elnic, jelnic, Hostan, pintic Siminic, Rush to the fields!
Thus, in the period of the empirical education furnished by the Anonymous Educator, the child would learn in the environment of the traditional village to know the parts of its body, to count, to know the days of the week, the animals, the plants from around; the child would develop its motility, the sense of rhythm and melody and the affectivity.
E.g. 11
Song for the hen27
Cluck! Cluck! As many eggs as I lay Are all taken away!
26 L. Toma Zoicaș, op. cit., p. 47, nr 5 apud Traian Mârza, Folclor Muzical din Bihor, (Musical folklore from Bihor) Ed. Muzicală, București, 1974, p. 89. 27 Nelu Ionescu, op. cit. p. 59, nr. 308.
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E.g. 12
Song for the cuckoo28
Cuckoo, how many years will you give me Till I will marry?...
Once the child grows and enters the collectiv of children, the plays with the peers, together with songs, dialogues and contests would develop not only their motoric, physical and competition aptitudes, or skills, but also the intelligence, the courage, the will and, finally, all these would be shaped into types of personalities: the quick one, the prudent, the domineering, the passive and the destroyer ones. There can be distinguished plays of girls only, like Lilioara, (Lioara) when – sometimes in the Easter Sunday – girls would choose their “sisters”, that is, their best friends, against the background of a carol, and boys-only plays, quite competitive, generally speaking, sometimes having an arsenal of traditional weapons, staves, pen-knives, bows and arrows, slings, but also whistles or other toys made by themselves. E.g. 13
Lioara29
28 Virgil Medan, op. cit, p. 178, nr. 242. 29 L Toma Zoicaș, op. cit., p. 92, nr. 30, apud, T. Mârza, Folclor muzical din Bihor, (Musical folklore from Bihor) p. 95.
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Lioara, lioara What a dream of a ewe lamb What row in a row That’s more for you And less for us? - If you feel sorry Come over here and choose The one you like Sister from us That has a creasy dress Beaten by a planisher With long eyebrows Like a lady has. Spoken: -Will you allow us free ride through the city? Yes, plenty of it and we’ll beat you With our fists on your backs!
The participation of the children in the manifestations of the traditional village would impose discipline regarding the learning of the Christmas repertoire, the organizing the rehearsals, the preparation of the festival. Many of the occasional productions which the adults quit practicing would pass in the children’s repertoire: so, at Christmas, children would carol, would “go with the (nativity) Star” or with the Sorcova (a bouquet used for New Year’s wishes), with the Kyrie Eleison (Kiraleisa) or with the Pluguşorul (the New Year’s dayplow).
E.g. 14
Christmas Carol30
30 L.Toma-Zoicaș, op. cit, pg. 100, nr. 5, apud.
198 THE ANONYMOUS EDUCATOR
Black chick put into the sack White flowers (refrain) We came to receive knot-shaped bread. White flowers Host, farewell White flowers And repay our carol White flowers With a sausage or blood-pudding White flowers As thick as my leg! White flowers
E.g. 15
Sorcova (a bouquet used for New Year’s wishes) 31
Joyful bouquet (of wishes) May you live and grow old As an apple-tree, as a pear-tree As a flower of rose
31 Ligia Toma Zoica, op. cit., p. 102, nr. 10, apud Mîrza - Szenik Arhiva Conservatorului Gh. Dima, 1966.
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Hard as a stone Fast as an arrow Hard as iron, Fast as steel.
Spoken: Many happy returns of the year! Will you treat or not With bread and sausage?...
The ancestral practices connected to the spring and summer agricultural feasts have suffered simplifications and lost their proper melodies and the ritual function. Children have taken over the texts and the ritual gestures like games. From these, we mention: songs and games of becoming brothers in arms, the Homanul, Ali mori (for March, 9), Câţumâţu (the Wednesday before Easter), the Lăzărel (in the Palm Saturday), Păpăruda (a magic ritual of rainmaking), Scaloianul (for fertility), Drăgaica (ritual dance for the Midsummer Day, for protecting the crop from hailstones), the Hăulitul(shrieks with playful function, heralding the coming of spring), the Toconelele (in the Thursday before Easter, it announces the end of Lent and the beginning of spring), the Căluş(folk dance, a rite of passage from childhood to manhood, sometimes played by children).
E.g. 16
Drăgaica32
32 Nelu Ionescu, op. cit., p. 291, nr. 1119.
200 THE ANONYMOUS EDUCATOR
There came the fairies (bis) To harvest the grain (bis) With skull-cups from children (bis) With beads from girls With bracelets from wives, There came the fairies (bis) The grain is pretty big (bis) And the fairies pretty little (bis). E.g. 17
Păpăruga33, The Rainmaker
Rainmaker, maker, Come forth, water us With a bucket of water All over the world. Where you hit with the plough Would rush as the wind. Where you dig with the hoe Would flow as the water.
33 L. Toma-Zoicas, op. cit., p. 111 apud. Nicolae Ursu, Cântece și jocuri de pe Valea Almajului, (Songs and Dances from Almaj Valey) Editura Muzicală București, 1958, p. 192.
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The characteristics of the rich musical repertoire of the folklore of the Romanian children present essential affinities with the repertoire of the children from all over, as concluded numerous researchers, including C. Brăiloiu, who demonstrated the existence of a universal common rhythmical system34. From among the traits synthetized by Emilia Comisel in her work Folclorul copiilor (Children’s Folklore) (1982) we glean the following traits of the repertoire of the Romanian children: - The prevailing vocal character, a proper system of versification, rhythm, melody, an emphasized syncretic character which imposes the study of all the compounding elements: song, move, dance, text35; - The unitary aspect of the repertoire in all the areas of the country, showing, as well, the existence of an archaic fund characterized by rudimentary melodic - rhythmic formulas36; - A very free system of versification, with metrical patterns from 2 to 13 syllables, iso- or hetero-metrical, with binary and ternary jointing of the metrical feet37; - Repetitive, simple, syllabic melodies, with descending profile, evolving by 2,3,4,5 joined sounds (bi/ tri/ tetra/ pentachord) or by formulas containing (major or minor) tierce (bi, tri, tetra, pentatonies), fourth or, more rarely, fifth. The large intervals, the sixth or the seventh are absent or are seen in very rare cases, as well as the second or the semitone38; - In their greatest majority, the sonorous systems are oligochordic/ pre-pentatonic; - The architectonic systems are based on repeated or combined musical cells or motives, usually identical, or, in the more recent layer of the folklore, on more complex structures. Generally, one repeated stanza is the most often pattern, sometimes with chorus, A – chorus, A-B or AA B etc.39 - The children rhythm, defined by C. Brăiloiu, presupposes the existence of some formulas valued by repetition and variation: duration of the syllables, joined two by two, in a variable length, in a binary rhythm, making up definite series by the total of the eighth of
34 Brăiloiu Constantin, La rhytmique enfantine, în Opere, vol. 1, 1967, p. 121-171 trad. Emilia Comișel, Editura Muzicală, București, 1967. 35 Emilia Comișel, Folclorul copiilor, Editura Muzicală, București, 1982, p. 49. 36 Emilia Comișel, op. cit, p. 50. 37 Idem, p. 29. 38 Ibidem, p. 32-33. 39 Ibidem, p 36-37.
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a line, regardless of the number of syllables. The regular or irregular mixtures of binary and ternary metrical groups, the stressed beginning, either with cruses, or with anacrusis (accent on the second syllable) are few others of the characteristics of the rhythm of the children40.
Together with the variety and the incomparable riches of these productions: the counting, the fairy tales, the plays of vigil, mixed plays, riddles, nicknames, songs of mocking and fun songs and many, many others are the expression of a solid, organic, enticing education a child appropriates by play and entertainment, by working with purpose, receiving from the Anonymous Educator everything for shaping of its personality. “As a matter of fact, the whole life of a child was organized according to a traditional code, rhythmical and rhymed, which the child follows unknowingly in all his or her actions”41. It is the fruit of a moral and spiritual code which was created in millennia of existence, being initiated by this twin empirical educational presence, that is, the family and the village community, and vanished away in less than a century. “The small associations of children have as their foundations norms, crystallized during the centuries, in the process of collective life, from which they cannot withdraw themselves – neither during the games, nor outside of it. The ones who withdraw from this code – whose aim is the shaping of the child in the spirit of justice and discipline – are punished by being excluded from the group (those who lie, try to cheat or are lazy). The family can forgive them, but the community will sanction them”42 The moral constrains builds consciences and the metaphor of the innocence from the children’s songs offer the way toward the shaping of the beautiful, harmonious person. This is the lesson of the Anonymous Educator. It is the lesson of education that the archaic society proposes to us as a model and which we can’t ignore as alternative, as long as the education of our children means our future.
Translated by Mircea Roman
40 Ibidem, p 39-41. 41 Virgil Medan, Folclorul copiilor, introduction, p. 8. 42 Ligia Toma Zoicaș, op. cit., p. 15.
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REFERENCES
Bârlea, Ovidiu, Poetica folclorică (Ars Poetica of the Folklore), Editura Univers, Bucureşti, 1979. Brăiloiu, Constantin, Opere, vol. 1, (Operas, tom 1), Ed. Muzicală, București, 1967, trad. Emilia Comișel Comişel, Emilia, Folclorul copiilor,(Children’s Folklore) Editura Muzicală, Bucureşti, 1982. Eliade, Mircea, Nostalgia originilor, (The origin’s nostalgy), Editura Humanitas, Bucureşti, 1994. Ionescu, Nelu, Luci, soare, luci!, (Shine sun, Shine!), Editura Muzicală, Bucureşti, 1981. Marian, Simeon-Florea, Naşterea la români, (The Births seen to the Romanians) Editura Grai şi Suflet, Bucureşti, 1995. Medan, Virgil, Folclorul copiilor, (Children’s folklore) the abstract of the Ph.D. thesis, Cluj-Napoca, 1983. Virgil Medan, Folclorul copiilor (Children’s folklore) editat de CJC, IȘC, CPPTC, Cluj-Napoca, 1980. Szenik, Ileana, Folclor (Folklore) Suport de curs pentru DECID, Academia de Muzică Gh Dima, 2001. Zoicaş Toma-Ligia, Pedagogia muzicii şi valorile folclorului, (Music Pedagogy and the Folklore’s values) Editura Muzicală, Bucureşti, 1987.
204 STUDIA UBB MUSICA, LXIII, 2, 2018 (p. 205 – 210) (RECOMMENDED CITATION) DOI:10.24193/subbmusica.2018.2.15
INTEGRATING COMPUTERIZED MUSICAL EDUCATION INTO AN INTERDISCIPLINARY PARADIGM; PROPOSAL OF APPLICATIONS USING SIBELIUS SOFTWARE
ALEXANDRA BELIBOU1
SUMMARY. This paper presents an interdisciplinary musical education approach for students in the musical field, through the use of Sibelius software applications. Active learning exercises provide students with a challenging and creative learning environment, computerized music education being not only a tool for seminar activities but also an opportunity to prepare students for the challenges of the contemporary world. Because many of the current education issues are best resolved using interdisciplinary approaches, it is important for students to be well trained in specialized disciplines and at the same time to be able to engage in interdisciplinary projects that test their creativity, critical thinking and ability to solve problems. The activities I propose, using Sibelius software for an interdisciplinary musical education, target the above objectives.
Keywords: Sibelius, software, interdisciplinary, music education.
Introduction Starting from my opinion that active learning exercises provide students with a challenging and creative learning environment, computerized music education being not only a tool for seminar activities but also an opportunity to prepare students for the challenges of the contemporary world, I propose some applications using Sibelius software for an interdisciplinary musical education for students in the musical field. Sibelius is a scorewriter software developed and release by Sibelius Software Limited, now part of Avid Technology. It is the world’s largest selling music notation program that can be used for creating, editing, and printing music scores.
1 Assist. Prof, PhD student, Transilvania University of Brașov, Faculty of Music, [email protected]
205 ALEXANDRA BELIBOU
As Heidi Westerlund states, “the profession of education needs to engage more actively in reflecting on how our societies are changing and how these changes challenge”2 our world. From this perspective, it is obvious the need to modernize the methods of teaching music, in a time when computer and music seem more and more difficult to separate. Research in the field shows that digital technologies have already been assimilated in the learning process from different countries as UK, US and China (King and Evanjelos 2016; Bauer 2014; Webster 2002; Rudolph et al. 2010; Gall and Breece 2013), but there are many other countries that are not using the full potential of the current digital technologies for classroom. Apudo-Achola Malachi writes that “studies (e.g. Bauer 2014; Gall 2013) indicate that a plethora of digital platforms such as the internet, music softwares, YouTube, iPad, smartphones, Sonic Pi, Google play are currently everywhere replacing the old analogue technologies like Radio, TV and bringing many exciting opportunities for learning activities, impacting what, where and how music learning is delivered.”3
Discussion: As mentioned above, Sibelius can be used both for musical creation and for scoring/ printing of scores. For a good assimilation of the tools and capabilities of this software, I propose the following applications for music students, exercises that aim at both computerized musical writing and other musical disciplines.
1. Music listening and writing By changing the existing notes, keeping the rhythm, the students have to listen to the first bars of the musical works indicated and write their themes in a single monophonic line, on the Sibelius project inserted below. This exercise regards music theory (rhythm and ear training), using of Sibelius tools for writing music, and also Music History (by proposing different auditions for students).
2 Heidi Westerlund, Visions for Intercultural Teacher Identity in C21st Super Diverse Societies, in Building interdisciplinary and intercultural bridges, BIBACC Publishing, 2017, p.12. 3 Apudo-Achola Malachi, Towards An Interdisciplinary Pedagogic Framework to Transform Music Learning with Technology-Mediated Environment in Higher Music Education in Kenya, in Building interdisciplinary and intercultural bridges, BIBACC Publishing, 2017, p. 113.
206 INTEGRATING COMPUTERIZED MUSICAL EDUCATION …
E.g.1
1. Melody and harmony Sibelius software can also be used in the Harmony classes, with the professor preparing a certain harmonic progression that needs a melodic line composed. This type of activity includes the possibility to listen to the written notes, so that students connect the theoretical harmonic knowledge with the musical reality. E.g. 2
207 ALEXANDRA BELIBOU
This type of activity encourages the creative fantasy of the student, as a small step toward the actual music creation activities later on.
2. Development of musical motifs By offering students short musical motifs, they are invited to develop them in terms of composition using all the learned methods (repetition, sequencing, inversion, recurrence, rhythm augmentation and diminution, writing variation), to create 16-20 musical bars that reflect the theoretical knowledge, but are also musically satisfying. This type of application can be used in the Composition classes, but also in the Musical Forms lessons. The important issue is that, contrary to the traditional pencil and sheet notation, the Sibelius software offers the audience the opportunity to listen to the notation, to correlate the theory with the musical practice. Sibelius software also has the tools to develop musical fragments automatically, helping students in their learning process. E.g. 3
3. Structure analysis The next text is given to the students: Listen to the next piece and read the score. Look at the lyrics, particularly punctuation, and try out singing the song to guide you in thinking about how long the sections are. Name the form, and mark the sections in the score. Analyze and explain how the form relates to other elements of the score. (When working in Sibelius, you may find it convenient to use Create Highlight or Edit Color and/or create brackets using the Lines menu to do this.) This text is accompanied by the following Sibelius score that can be listened to in the software interface:
208 INTEGRATING COMPUTERIZED MUSICAL EDUCATION …
E.g. 4.
This type of exercise is usefull in the Music Analysis class, but also in the World Music lessons or Folk Music seminar activities.
Conclusions The current society, with all its changes in technology, have imposed the computer as a daily necessity in the lives of young people. This leads to the need to rethink the traditional didactic strategies in order to integrate the computer into the learning process, but also to prepare the students for a future that is progressing towards the digitization of artistic activities. The examples of interdisciplinary musical activities using the Sibelius software, presented above, are evidence of the multiple possibilities of the digital potential in the musical arts sphere. As Matthew D. Thibeault observes in
209 ALEXANDRA BELIBOU a research called Media as an Invitation to Rethink Music Education4, we have to take into account in current music education three circumstances that belong to the present: commoditization, efficiency, and sound fidelity. I believe that all of these time-specific features can be assimilated into the design of musical didactic activities by introducing the computer into practical exercises. As Douglas Thompson says, „Sibelius’s invention and appearance in the last decades of the 20th century provided composers with the technology intended to enhance productivity, simplify themore mundane music composition tasks, and empower them to create elegant physical manifestations of their musical imagination’s work—musical scores”5. The proposal of integrating computerized musical education into an interdisciplinary paradigm does not only refer to activities with students, but requires thorough training among teachers. In order for practical exercises from musical disciplines to take place, teachers need to easily use music writing software and other digital tools.
REFERENCES
Malachi, Apudo-Achola, Towards An Interdisciplinary Pedagogic Framework to Transform Music Learning with Technology-Mediated Environment in Higher Music Education in Kenya, in Building interdisciplinary and intercultural bridges, BIBACC Publishing, 2017, p. 113. Thibeault, Matthew. Media as an Invitation to Rethink Music Education, General Music Today, Vol. 27(3), National Association for Music Education, 2014, p.36. Thompson, Douglas Earl. Select Features in Sibelius 6 for Music Educators, General Music Today 25(2), National Association for Music Education, 2011, p. 53. Westerlund, Heidi. Visions for Intercultural Teacher Identity in C21st Super Diverse Societies, in Building interdisciplinary and intercultural bridges, BIBACC Publishing, 2017, p. 12.
4 Matthew Thibeault, Media as an Invitation to Rethink Music Education, General Music Today, Vol. 27(3), National Association for Music Education, 2014, p.36 5 Douglas Earl Thompson, Select Features in Sibelius 6 for Music Educators, General Music Today 25(2), National Association for Music Education, 2011, p. 53.
210 STUDIA UBB MUSICA, LXIII, 2, 2018 (p. 211 – 266) (RECOMMENDED CITATION) DOI:10.24193/subbmusica.2018.2.16
ETHNOGRAPHIC AND FOLK MUSIC TRADITIONS OF JOBBÁGYTELKE (SÂMBRIAŞ) - III. PART
HENRIETTA CIOBA1
SUMMARY. The paper hereby entitled Ethnographic and Folk Music Traditions of Jobbágytelke (Sâmbriaş) presents a village in Mureş county. I started my research on this village already during my high-school years, more precisely in the school year of 2012-2013. This was the period when I collected the pieces of information regarding the traditions and folk costumes of the village and the 23 tunes that Mr. András Sinkó (my teacher of ethnography at the time) helped me do the notation for. In the first year of my university studies I extended the paper. This was the period when I collected the children’s songs, the nursery rhymes and the children’s plays that used to be played by the old generation in the nursery and in elementary school. This year I attempted to set the existing information on scientific basis and to collect more information. This is when I dwelt on the origin and historical data of the village, on the community institutions meant to preserve traditions, on folk dance and the members of the folk dance ensamble. I succeeded in noting another 21 new tunes, 3 of which I wrote down from recordings made by the late Antal Balla. In the paper I used 28 other tunes as well, besides those collected by me. For these 28 other tunes I own acknowledgements for István Almási, PhD who kindly granted that I have access to his collection kept at the Folklore Archive of Cluj-Napoca. The paper hereby could not have been written without the kind help of Ilona Szenik, PhD. It is her merit that my research can rely on scientific grounds and that the tunes are organized and have musical analysis attached to them. And last, but not least I owe acknowledgements to my thesis coordinator, Mrs. Köpeczi-Kirkósa Júlia, PhD, to Zoltán Gergely, collaborator at the Folklore Archive of Cluj- Napoca and also to my informants from the village and to all the inhabitants of the village who readily informed me and introduced me to village life.
Keywords: folklore, folk music, research of folk music, musical analysis, folk costumes, folks dance, folk tradition
1 Psychology Department of the Psychology and Educational Sciences Faculty of “Babeș- Bolyai University” of Cluj-Napoca. Romania, E-Mail: [email protected]
211 HENRIETTA CIOBA
4. Tunes of songs for general purposes These types of tunes gathered in the present chapter have been organized according to criteria currently supported by the specialized literature. The first classification and detailed musical analysis of these tunes is found in A magyar népdal (Hungarian Folk Songs) by Béla Bartók. He classified tunes into A), B) and C) classes. The 40 tunes he collected in Sâmbriaş can be classified as follows: A) 6 | B) 14 | C) 17 | on swineherd’s horn: 32. Out of these 40 tunes 8 were published in the collection of folk songs annexed to the book: A) no. 57 | B) no. 119, no. 143| C) no. 181, 258, 283, 293, 299c. Bartók organized the tunes into subclasses of the three main classes and described them according to structural marks (line metric, rhythmical structure, cadence).
Béla Bartók: Tunes of Sâmbriaş collected into his book entitled A magyar népdal: Table 1
Examples from Bartók’s classification New classification The bibliography variants No. 57. forgotten RMNd (FsHR) A) Elmentem a kútra transposition by a fifth no. 128. 30. (I went to the well) old style No. 119.
A B Bk A
B) Hej, édesanyám Járdányi II./15 75. new style (Oh, Dear Mother) no. 143. A B B A
B) Már minálunk (Well, Kerényi: 189. 89. in Our Village) popular folk song
2 Béla Bartók: A magyar népdal, 1924, (The Hungarian Folk Songs) In: Bartók összegyűjtött írásai I. (Bartók’s Collected Works), Published by: András Szőlősi, Zeneműkiadó, Budapest, 1966.
212 ETHNOGRAPHIC AND FOLK MUSIC TRADITIONS OF JOBBÁGYTELKE (SÂMBRIAŞ) - III. PART
no. 181. Kivirágzott már a nád diatonic idem Kodály ─ C) (The Reed Had old Vârghiş Already Bloomed) dance tune no.302 - no. 258. Beteg az én rózsám small ambitus MNTK (CHFT) III.
C) (My Honey Is Not - Well) old style type 130 no. 283.
small ambitus MNTK (CHFT) IV.
C) Piros kukorica szár - new style type 197 (Red Einkorn Stalk) no. 293. pentatonic scale Megállj, megállj te kis MNTK (CHFT) I. madár 40.
C) recitative - (Just Wait You (increase in the type number of lines) Little Bird) idem Kodály ─ no. 299C. A A B A Vârghiş 438a.
C) Erdő, erdő, erdő 68. (Forest, Forest) new style Járdányi II./164.
He defined the old style (class A) according to very strict criteria (four lined isometric stanzas, pentatonic scale). Class B) consisted of tunes with a repetitive structure. He made a class C) for all the other tunes that did not fit the criteria of the former two classes (a mixed class with quite a few subgroups). In this book Bartók deals only with tunes of songs for general purposes. Parallelly Kodály, in his work entitled A magyar népzene (Hungarian Folk Music) offered a comprehensive picture of the musical genres (children’s songs, shamanic songs, wailing songs, instrumental music) and pointed to
213 HENRIETTA CIOBA
possible directions for further research using examples of comparisons (affinity with peoples from the East, ecclesiastical and secular music, the new style).3 The younger collaborators of Bartók and Kodály contributed to the publication of the materials collected by the two composers either through the personal guidance the two or, after their death, by following the directions set out by them. Classification suffered radical changes. I made the following summary based on the course taught by Ilona Szenik.4 Type catalogues were published and new substyles were identified by adding more criteria. György Kerényi created a separate catalogue for the popular folk songs. According to the latest view in the field tunes of the folk songs having the same style of expression make up a style in folk music. The most important traits of the style are structural compositions related to the melodic flow, pitches of the various keys, musical turns and the cadence suite that goes along with these.
4.1. Descending melodic lines with pentatonic scale The old style tunes collected at Sâmbriaş having a descending melodic line with pentatonic scale can be divided into two groups according to structure. 1. The first class belongs to tunes showing marks of the transposition by a fifth. The motifs repeated a fifth deeper are usually situated at the ending or beginning turns of the parallel lines of the introductory or the closing part or at the closing notes. In the case of some of the tunes the dimming of the pentatonic structure was brought along by the main closure on the [b3] pitch instead of pitch [5] and/or the beginning with high pitched notes in the third line. The succession of the examples below is defined by the main closure, then the pitch of the closing note of the first line. Example no. 1 is undoubtedly a variant of the tune whose most popular lyrics is entitled Elindultam szép hazámból” (I Have Set Out from My Homeland). Its main closure is [b3] and specialized literature presents it in this variant, too.5
3 Zoltán Kodály: A magyar népzene excerpt from vol. IV of Magyarság Néprajza, 1937; idem from 1951 having several editions and a collection of folk songs edited by Lajos Vargyas. 4 Ilona Szenik: Népzenetudomány ─ Magyar és román népzene (Folk Music Studies - Hungarian and Romanian Folk Music), 1998, Kolozsvár, Erdélyi Tankönyvtanács. chapter III, pp. 37- 45. 5 Pál Járdányi I. type 31st; Kodály ─ Vargyas: no. 117.
214 ETHNOGRAPHIC AND FOLK MUSIC TRADITIONS OF JOBBÁGYTELKE (SÂMBRIAŞ) - III. PART
E.g. 1
Sâmbriaş, Bakó Péter (54), 1965, coll. István Almási 6
The cadence suite of the example of Iacobeni (8, 5, 4, 1) reflects the relations of the transposition by a fifth, but there is no transposition in the musical turn. The [5] main closure can be found also in the variant collected in the Gyimes region.7 In example no. 2 the transposition by a fifth between lines 2 and 4 surround a pentatonic base, it is double system pentatony. In line 3 the initial motif starts from a high pitch; the cadence suite reflects the transposition by 5 5 a fifth (4 5 VII 1), the formula of the melodic structure is A B Av B, the heterometric structure of the lyrics (7, 9, 7, 11) creates an increase in the number of notes at the level of the rhythm.8 E.g. 2
Sâmbriaş, Bakó Péter (54), 1965, coll. István Almási 9
6 The translation of the lyrics is: I’m going down the village road / Nobody even says hello / Only my dear wife tells me / You bastard wouldn’t you come in. 7 A Magyar Népzene Tára vol. XII., type 126, no. 1-5. 8 A variant of this is in: Jagamas ─ Faragó: no. 220. number of syllables: 7, 11, 7, 11. 9 The translation of the lyrics is: Do you see these 50 dollars / I’ll spend it drinking, would you mind? / Honey, really, I don’t care / In the summer we’ll make double.
215 HENRIETTA CIOBA
Béla Bartók published only one tune belonging to class A) from his collection in Sâmbriaş. It is found in example no. 3. (no. 57 in the book entitled A magyar népdal) In the tune that has 11 syllables there is a distance by a fifth at the closure of lines 1 and 3 and in the initial motif of lines 2 and 4; line 3 begins on a high pitch. The cadence suite is 5 b3 1 1, the formula of the melodic 5 structure is A B C/A5 Bvk.
E.g. 310
F.1301a); IV. Jobbágytelke (Maros-Torda), Balog Györgyné (50), 1914. B.
The second group is formed by tunes in which the descending melodic line is formed through the pitches of the first and the closing part, without using transposition. In example no. 4 line 1 has high pitches all the way, the second descends to b3; in the closure only the initial notes are high. This example still contains elements that resemble the transposition by a fifth. The pentatonic base is high pitched in the introductory part and one fifth lower in the closure, but motifs are not repeated; (high: 2 − 2 − 2, then low 1 −2 − 2). The formula of the melodic structure is chainlike: A B C D, the cadence suite is 8 [b3] 4 1.
10 The translation of the lyrics is: I went to the well some water to draw / I met there a chatty turtle-dove / It had a paper in its claws / All young people were arrested as outlaws.
216 ETHNOGRAPHIC AND FOLK MUSIC TRADITIONS OF JOBBÁGYTELKE (SÂMBRIAŞ) - III. PART
E.g. 4
Sâmbriaş, Sándor Balla (57), 1965, coll. István Almási 11
The following tunes have a structure in which a line is repeated. In example no. 5 the first line is repeated, its structure is A A B C, its cadence suite: 4 [4] b3 1. In example no. 6 the structure of line 2 is repeated with a different cadence.12 Melodic structure: A B Bk C, cadence suite: 5 b3 5 1. E.g. 5
Sâmbriaş, Mrs. Elek Balla (41), 1965, coll. István Almási 13
11 The translation of the lyrics is: I have a small bullock with big horns / Because of his horn it doesn’t fit the barns / From his horns I have to cut off some / Darling with you now I must part. 12 Kodály ─ Vargyas no. 60; the place of collection: the Gyimes region; collection by László Lajtha, 1912. 13 The translation of the lyrics is: I wanted to be a married man / A turtle-dove I dreamt I marry can / The turtle-dove proved to be a uhu-bird / Settling down was such a bad, bad thought.
217 HENRIETTA CIOBA
E.g. 6
Sâmbriaş, Éva Bereczki (21), 2016, coll. H.C. 14
4.2. Recitative tunes based on the pentatonic scale This style is called the pseudopsalmodic style, since some of the tunes of the psalms in Gregorian style resemble it. Let me quote Kodály in this matter: “... It seems that a more general, more international, ancient recitative formula survived here, for the above mentioned people could hardly have taken this from the liturgical psalm tunes of either the Christian or the Jewish church, where indeed it has an important role to this day.”15 The main structure of the tunes belonging to this stylistic group is formed based on the pentatonic basis; (in relative solmization called do – re – mi, and the finalis is usually la, and transposed: g1 − b1 − c2 − d2 − f2). In some of the tunes also “pien” notes are present in the rotative motifs or in the passing notes. In the work entitled A magyar népdaltípusok katalógusa (The Catalogue of the Hungarian Folk Song Types - CHFT) vol. I., in chapter Pseudopsalmodic style types are divided into two subgroups: the first subgroup is that of the tunes having a melodic line insisting on the pentatonic basis, the other subgroup is that of the tunes having a high pitched recitativity in the introductory line.
14 The translation of the lyrics is: Dear Lord pease help me so / I can live with whom I love / For if you deny my wish / I’ll certainly end my days. 15 Kodály ─ Vargyas: p. 23. (the expression “the above mentioned people” refers to the examples collected from some earlier enumerated eastern people)
218 ETHNOGRAPHIC AND FOLK MUSIC TRADITIONS OF JOBBÁGYTELKE (SÂMBRIAŞ) - III. PART
E.g. 7
Sâmbriaş, Sándor Balla (57), 1965, coll. István Almási 16
In example no. 7 the introductory line having a pentatonic basis has a closure descending into deep notes followed by an arched melodic line in lines 2 and 3 and returning to deeper notes in line 4. Cadence suite: VII b3 1 1. In the catalogues this tune type has also variants when the last two notes of line 1 move an octave higher (g2 − f2).17 Example no. 8 revolves around the pentatonic basis touching upon the sixth and the seventh in lines 1 and 2 and upon the second in line 4. The closure in line 3 is high pitched and recitative. The motif in variant no. 103 from the collection of folk songs is an octave lower; having in view variants in the specialized literature this can be considered a specific trait.18 The musical analysis of this type: melodic structure: A B C D, cadence suite: 4 [b3] VII [1], number of syllables in one line: 11. E.g. 8
Sâmbriaş, Irén Kiss (65), 2012, coll. H.C.
16 The translation of the lyrics is: Brandy is made out of some strong spirits / Therefore I look as I don’t own a thing / I wish they made it out of vinegar / Then the tapster wouldn’t take my money, all. 17 MNTK (CHFT) I. type 26; Járdányi I. no. 216. 18 MNTK (CHFT) I. type 30; Jagamas ─ Faragó no. 103.
219 HENRIETTA CIOBA
Édesanyám, hol fogok én meghalni? Hol fog az én piros vérem kifolyni? Erdélyország közepébe a sírom, Megüzenem, édesanyám, ne sírjon.19
Example no. 9a and 9b and variant no. 35 from the collection of folk songs, collected by István Almási belong to the so called woe tunes having an increased number of lines.20 Line 6 in the stanza according to the tune is divided into two lines of 3+3; in fact lines 3 and 6 are nothing more than an indexation of the closure of the introductory and closing parts sang with mumbling syllables replacing lyrics. The variant collected by Bartók has a rhythm of 6/8 which places it into class C), parts where the number of lines increase consist of 5 syllables.21 In variants collected later instances where the number of lines increases have 8 or 9 syllables with an increase in the number of notes that cancel the basic rhythm of 4/4 present in those two bars.
E.g. 9a
Sâmbriaş, Mrs. László Balla (67), 1965, coll. István Almási 22
19 The translation of the lyrics is: They are tinning in Sâmbriaș the tower / Twelve young maidens toll the great big bell / Twelve young maidens with twelve handsome lads / For each maiden a sweetheart already has. // Dear mother where will I die? / Where will my red blood be shed? / My grave will be in the heart of Transylvania, / But do not cry for me, dear one. 20 Published in Herţea ─ Almási no. 35. 21 Bartók: no. 293. idem Kodály ─ Vargyas 310. 22 The translation of the lyrics is: My mother loved me so dearly / In a soft cradle she put me / Hey, oya, oya, oya-ha / Then she got pissed and throw me out / With my head I hit the ground / Hey, oya, oya, oya-ha.
220 ETHNOGRAPHIC AND FOLK MUSIC TRADITIONS OF JOBBÁGYTELKE (SÂMBRIAŞ) - III. PART
E.g. 9b
Sâmbriaş, Kálmán Orbán, jr. (25), 2016, coll. H.C. 23
2. Édesanyám rózsafája, 3. Virágzik a cseresznyefa, Én vagyok a legszebb ága Szebben virít a rózsám arca, Az anyád ragyogó csillagát Aj, jaj, jaj, jaj, jaj… Kihajlottam az utcára, Rózsám arca télbe – nyárba Leány, legény bosszújára, Legvirítóbb a határba. Aj, jaj, jaj, jaj, jaj… Aj, jaj, jaj, jaj…
In the township of Aluniş greographically in the vicinity of Sâmbriaş this tune is called Falu nótája (The Village Song).24 In this variant the cadence of lines 3 and 6 descends by a fourth (b3 –> VII and 1 -> V). The recruited lads sing this song together while walking down the street. Only one tune having the rhythm of the swineherd’s dance represents the second subclass of the pseudopsalmodic tunes with high pitched initial notes. (Other names for this type of rhythm are colomeyka - in the northern Slavic region and wagans - in the Western Middle Age poetry). This section of the tune can be considered incomplete for it is made up of three lines: after the repetition of line A a six-syllable line follows. This repeats the initial motif of lines 3 and 4, and then the section closes with the closing
23 The translation of the lyrics is: My youth is nearly spent / Therefore I’m heartbroken / To hell with all passing time! / Youth is really a great power / All who lost it became sour / Hey ey ey ey Hey ey ey ey! // Lo, the rose bush of my mother, / I’m the fairest branch of all the other,/ Oh the starry eyes of your mother! / Out to the street this branch of mine has bent, / Therefore girls and boys would fret, / Hey ey ey ey Hey ey ey ey! // Blossoms on the cherry tree / No one is fairer but thee / Hey ey ey ey Hey ey ey ey! // Dear one, in the winter, in the summer, / Your face is the fairest of all the other. / Hey ey ey ey Hey ey ey ey! 24 Jagamas ─ Faragó: no. 292.
221 HENRIETTA CIOBA motif of line 4.25 The entire structure of the tune will be compared to an instrumental variant published by Georg Martin under the title „Marosszéki forgatós” (Turn Step of Marosszék) (collected in: Corund, Harghita county).26 The formula of the melodic structure of the two tunes is:
a) A A b+b+c b) A A B Bvk E.g. 10a
Sâmbriaş, Irén Kiss (65), 2012, coll. H.C.27
Elvesztettem zsebkendőmet, megszid anyám érte, Aki nekem visszaadja, csókot adok érte. Hej, adok, nem adok, ha nem adok, nem kapok, s anélkül maradok
E.g. 10b
Corund (Harghita county), MGy
25 In the variant collected by István Almási (Collection of folk songs) the structure of the tune is the same, there are differences only in the musical turns. 26 Georg Martin: Magyar tánctípusok és táncdialektusok. Népművelődési Propaganda Iroda, Budapest, no year of publication, no. 126. 27 The translation of the lyrics is: I lost my goats, my mother will beat me so badly for it / Gorgeous girls have it, they want but a kiss / Hey, are they, are they not, they are but a bunch of broth, I will never sleep now. // I lost my kerchief, my mother will beat me so badly for it, / Whoever returns it can be sure he will have a kiss. / Hey, I will give, or not, should I not give, I will not receive and I will go wanting.
222 ETHNOGRAPHIC AND FOLK MUSIC TRADITIONS OF JOBBÁGYTELKE (SÂMBRIAŞ) - III. PART
4.3. Old tunes that do not have five-pitched gradually descending melodic line The expressions used in the title I have taken from the tune index of the Kodály - Vargyas Collection of folk songs.28 In the course of the changes in systematization this group of tunes had several names (waste land type, diatonic recitative, wailing style). Among the songs collected in Sâmbriaş there are only three tunes that correspond to the particularities presented in the subtitle. Bartók classified example no. 11 into class C: it was also published in the Collection of folk songs by Kodály – Vargyas in the group of wailing style tunes with a third in the minor based on cadence suite 5 4 2 1 and the particular musical turns of the lines in the introductory part.29 E.g. 1130
Jobbágytelke (Maros-Torda), Boldizsárné (70 körül). Bartók B., 1914. Lsz. 18853
In the melodic line of example no. 12 there is a major third again. In cadence suite 5 4 5 1 the closure of line 3 steps from 2nd to 5th. The lyrics is a balade in the new style (beginning “Szabó Gyula egy vasárnap délután” (Gyula Szabó One Sunday Afternoon). In the type catalogue the wailing style is classified as a subtype.31
28 Kodály ─ Vargyas: p. 291. 29 Bartók: no. 181., idem in Kodály ─ Vargyas no. 302. 30 The translation of the lyrics is: The flower my sweetheart gave me withered / Which was just another sign that I will part with her / And we parted all right, with my joyful sweetheart / La la la la la la la la la la la la la la. 31 MNTK (CHFT) II. type 52.b.
223 HENRIETTA CIOBA
The melodic line of example no. 13 is Doric, a particularity of the wailing style. The cadence suite is: 5 4 b3 1. István Almási published the tune as a dance tune.32
E.g. 12
Sâmbriaş, Irén Kiss (65), 2012, coll. H.C.
Szabó Gyula, Horvát Jólánt szereti, De a Jolán szülei nem engedik. Hadd el, Jolán, ha nem szabad szeretni, Majd meglátod mit fogok cselekedni.
Mikor kiértek az erdő szélére, Na most, Jolán, térdepelj le a földre! Mer’ a szívem nem hagyja, hogy másé légy, Itt most ketten meg kell haljunk egymásér’.
Szabó Gyula revolvere de fényes, Jolánkának két golyó elégséges. Kettőt lőtt a Jolánkának szívébe, Egyet meg a saját maga fejébe.33
32 Herţea ─ Almási no. 34. variants: MNTK (CHFT) II. 32.b.; Jagamas ─ Faragó: no. 204. 33 The translation of the lyrics is: Gyula Szabo one Sunday afternoon / Met on the street Jolanka, the nicest girl / He invited her to go to the forest / So that they could pick a bouquet of flowers. // Gyula Szabó loves Jólán Horvát,/ But Jolán’s parents would not let them meet. / Don’t you worry, Jolán, if love is forbidden, / You’ll see what in me I have hidden. // When they reached the forest on the hill, / Jolán, dear, kneel on the ground you will! / For my heart will never let you have another, / In this spot we will die for each other. // Gyula Szabó’s revolver is so shiny, / The two bullets for Jolánka so tiny. / He shot Jolán twice right in the heart / Then he went on blowing his own brain out.
224 ETHNOGRAPHIC AND FOLK MUSIC TRADITIONS OF JOBBÁGYTELKE (SÂMBRIAŞ) - III. PART
E.g. 13
Sâmbriaş, Sándor Balla (57), 1965, coll. István Almási 34
4.4. Small ambitus, old style Example no. 14 is threefold; in the Doric melodic line pitches 7 and 8 are reached only in the rotative motifs of line 1. The closing motif is repeated with variations thus line 1 is made up of six measures of 2/4; in lines 2 and 3 the typical 4/4 rhythm of the swineherd dance is preserved.35 E.g. 14a
Sâmbriaş, Sándor Balla (57), 1965, coll. István Almási 36
34 The translation of the lyrics is: My dear mother always advised me well / Not to spend too much time at the twinning circle / For I will have myself beaten soon enough / And there will be no one to clean my shirt. 35 Lajos Vargyas: A magyar vers ritmusa (The Rhythm of the Hungarian Poems) p. 73. 36 There is no stone in the mill / Still it grinds wheat / Still it grinds wheat / My sweetheart is not to see me / Still she wants to meet / Still she wants to meet.
225 HENRIETTA CIOBA
In the variants published in the specialized literature the motif increasing the number of notes in the rhythm of line 1 is not a variation, but a repetition; and there are insignificant differences also in lines 2 and 3. Bartók classified the tune as belonging to class C; the same tune was published also in the collection of folk songs by Kodály ─ Vargyas.37
E.g. 14b38
Jobbágytelke (Maros-Torda), Bereczki Antal (28). Sárosi B., 1962. AP 4382/c.
Hoca, babám, jobb kezedet, forduljunk egyet, forduljunk egyet, Onnan megyünk a meggyesbe, hogy szedjünk meggyet. ://
Leszedte anémet leány minden ágáról, ágabogáról, Hervadjon el két szép rózsa két orcájáról. ://
4.5. Small ambits, new style In the case of example no. 15 the lyrics of the ballade is of the same type as the old style ballade entitled “Halálra táncoltatott lány” (The Girl Who Was Forced to Dance Until She Died), but its tune is newer.39
37 Collection of examples by Kodály ─ Vargyas no. 286. 38 The translation of the lyrics is: There is no stone in the mill / Still it grinds wheat / Still it grinds wheat / My sweetheart is not to see me / Still she wants to meet / Still she wants to meet. // Give me honey your right hand and let’s off to dance/ Let’s off to dance / Then we go picking sour cherries off the neighbour’s fence. // The Saxon girl picked the cherries, all there was to eat / I wish they would take her off her feet. 39 MNTK (CHFT) IV. type 446/f, g.
226 ETHNOGRAPHIC AND FOLK MUSIC TRADITIONS OF JOBBÁGYTELKE (SÂMBRIAŞ) - III. PART
E.g. 15
Sâmbriaş, Margit Szántó (16), 1965, coll. István Almási 40
In some variants the closing note descends by a fourth with relative solmization: It ends in so, while the example above ends in do.
4.6. Secular artistic music Zoltán Kodály: In the chapter Secular artistic music of his introductory study entitled The Hungarian Folk Music he stated based on many comparative examples that: “The influence of artistic music must have been continuous. Every age marked its own traces on the tune, even if today we are unable to prove this accurately having no written memories of some ages.”41 He mentions the last example in the chapter - from the collection of Bartók in Kalotaszeg - in relation to tune no. 379 of the collection of folk songs stating the following: “...Here we find a particular tune, which differs from the main types of tunes of folk music both in structure and in melodic line. It has five lines in a stanza, its intervals remind us of the artistic songs of the end of the 18th century, its main cadence of [3] shows its foreign origin. In Transylvania it is a tune of the wedding ceremony, they go for the bride singing it.”42 He presents as an example meant to prove the origin of the tune a five-lined drinking-song noted down at the beginning of the 19th century and then collected in 1832 by István Tóth.43
40 The translation of the lyrics is: Good evening, good evening / Dear Mrs. Tollasi / Where is my sweetheart, Erzsi / She’s already gone to sleep? 41 Zoltán Kodály: 1952, 54. l. 42 op. cit. p. 53. 43 István Tóth: the two highly valuable scored collections of the above mentioned Reformed cantor from Kiskunfülöpszállás, 1828 – 1832 és 1832 – 1843.
227 HENRIETTA CIOBA
One of the variants collected by Bartók in Sâmbriaş was published in the group of old style, small ambitus tunes.44 Seven variants having the function of the girl taking leave of her old maiden status were published in the volume entitled Lakodalom (The Wedding) of A Magyar Népzene Tára III.; six of the variants were collected in the north-western part of the region of Kalotaszeg and only one data originates from the Szeklerland (no. 307., from around Odorheiu Secuiesc). The oldest collection: was made in Zam, 1899, by Béla Vikár, the man who initiated folk song collection by phonograph.45 István Almási also published a variant from his collection made in Sâmbriaş in 1965. Since it has a set rhythm, this tune can also function as a dance tune.46 The tune was preserved in the village to our days. I made a recording of this tune myself in 2016. The lyrics of the former drinking-song was replaced by the lyrics of an artistic song already in the time when Bartók collected it (Ne menj kislány a tarlóra (Girly Don’t Go Out to the Stubble) or: Meg kell a búzának érni (The Einkorn Needs to Grow) ). The sequence of the variants in examples no. 16, 17 and 18 below is:
a) drinking-song from the beginning of the 19th century (Kodály ─ Vargyas p. 54.) b) song for the bride to take leave of her parents from Kalotaszeg (Bartók: no. 270) c) dance song from Sâmbriaş (collected in 2016)
E.g. 16
44 MNTK (CHFT) III. type 29/a; the lyrics is specific to popular folk songs. 45 Zam is currently a part of Sâncraiu. 46 Herțea ─ Almási: no. 36.
228 ETHNOGRAPHIC AND FOLK MUSIC TRADITIONS OF JOBBÁGYTELKE (SÂMBRIAŞ) - III. PART
E.g. 1747
Muz.Fo.810b). Magyargyerőmonostor, (Koloys vm.) 1910.B.
E.g. 18
Sâmbriaş, Kálmán Orbán, jr. (25), 2016, coll. H.C.
Ne menj kislány a tarlóra, Gyenge vagy még a sarlóra. Elvágod a gyönge kezed Ki süt nekem lágy kenyeret? Ej, haj, haj ja csuhajja.
Az aratást alig várom Akkor veszlek el, galambom. Meg is nézem minden reggel, Sárgult-e a kalász éjjel, Ej, haj, haj ja csuhajja.48
47 Here they come, here they come for me / Where’s my coronet, I need to be ready / The oxen wagon is in the door, the groom is knocking / While the bride looks out of the window longing.
229 HENRIETTA CIOBA
All three tunes have five lines. On the 3rd pitch of the major hexachord the main closure is in the second melodic line. In example c) the last line of the tune has no lyrics, instead there are mumbling syllables replacing lyrics. There are differences in the tune related to tempo and the length of the elements of the rhythm. In the 2/4 measures of the drinking-song the use of pulsing eight notes is a specific of the old style musical notation. In some places the musical turns differ as well, but every motif contains the same pitches of the tune.
4.7. Tunes of the new style According to the methodology determined in the specialized literature, the new style tunes having repetitive structure are grouped in a sequence. In the subgroups the sequence is determined by the ambits and the melodic line of the A lines. Another criteria is the key of the tune. According to this criteria there are three subgroups which can be differentiated by syllables of the relative solmization: a (pentatonic basic closure Dorian, Eolian), G (Myxolidian) and C (major). a) the first subgroup: A 5 5 A; ending in a E.g. 19
Az én babám kiállt a kapujába, Sirat engem fekete gyász ruhába. Hadd el, babám, ne sirassál engemet, Másnak adtam cserébe a szívemet.49
48 The translation of the lyrics is: The wheat needs to ripen dry / My heart will of sorrow die / And that’s repeated daily / Hey hey hey ey ey ey. // Girly don’t go out to the stubble / To hold a sickle you are still too fragile. / And if you happen to cut your hand / Who will bake my light whipped bread?/Hey hey hey ey ey ey.// I can hardly wait for the harvest to begin/ For marry you then I certainly will./ So I go out every morning to the fields/ To check how the crops are ripening./ Hey hey hey ey ey ey. 49 The translation of the lyrics is: I’ll go down to the medow to cut the wheat / But today the challenge I cannot meet / For the meadow of yellow flowers is full / And me and my old sweetheart part for good. // My sweetheart stood out to her gate / Dressed in black she’s wailing for my sake./ Never mind you wailing for me dear one / For my heart belongs to another one.
230 ETHNOGRAPHIC AND FOLK MUSIC TRADITIONS OF JOBBÁGYTELKE (SÂMBRIAŞ) - III. PART
E.g. 20 50
Sâmbriaş, Sándor Balla (57), 1965, coll. István Almási
b) the second subgroup: A5 B A; ending in a E.g. 21
50 The translation of the lyrics is: The creek eroded the off part of our meadow / And my heart is greratly filled with sorrow / And this sorrow will only go away / If my sweetheart and I will be wed.
231 HENRIETTA CIOBA
Az eke a földet nem magának szántja, Az anyja, a fiát, nem magának szánja. Húsz évig tartsa magának, húsz év után adja másnak, Harminchat hónapot szógál a császárnak.51 E.g. 22
Var. measures 1-4
Azt a gyűrűt amit adtam add vissza, Mert miköztünk a szerelem nem tiszta. Nem adom, nem adom, hogy adnám vissza, Nem volt arany, mind megette a rozsda.
Én az úton lefelé se mehetek, Mer’ a lányok mind selyembe öltöznek. Selyem a szoknyája, leng a derekán, Barna legény kopogtat az ablakán.
Barna legény, ne kopogtass, gyere be, Ölelésre vár a karom idebe. Gyere be, gyere be te barna babám, Nem haragszik terád az édesanyám.52
51 The translation of the lyrics is: It is raining and the street is all muddy / Let me in for I am soked, my Betsy / My bayonette gets wet / My rifle gets rusty / My arms get so week, the rifle belt icy. // The plough does not work the land for its own sake / Neither does a mother a son for her make./ Twenty years she gets to keep him then away / And thirty-six months he owes service to the state. (The last short line is a variant to the tune of: ‘he ows service’.) 52 The translation of the lyrics is: The lamp in the inner room is still on / A girl inside has something to think over / Come in, come in, brown-haired dear Lou / For my mother entirely approves of you.// Give me back the token ring I’ve given you/ For our love does not seem to matter to you./ I will not, I’ll never return that old ring/ It went rusty, not of gold, what did you bring?// I can hardly walk the streets of the village/ For every girl shows me just her best image./ She takes up her best
232 ETHNOGRAPHIC AND FOLK MUSIC TRADITIONS OF JOBBÁGYTELKE (SÂMBRIAŞ) - III. PART
ending in g. E.g. 2353
Sâmbriaş, József Simó (62), 1965, coll. István Almási
E.g. 24
54
Sâmbriaş, Boldizsár Miklós (77), 2014, coll. H.C.
attire and best look/ A brown-haired lad comes on her window to knock.// Do not knock, but come on right in, dear lad,/ My hands hardly wait to give you a big hug./ Come in, come in, brown-haired dear Lou/ For my mother entirely approves of you. 53 The translation of the lyrics is: It’s evening, it’s evening, / The sun is setting down/ There goes the recruit / His eyes full of tear and sorrow / He returns to the barrack of the borough. 54 The translation of the lyrics is: Only those who have a ring / Can boast to have a true love / My love is just blonde, I want an exchange / Give me yours and I’ll pay in wine the difference.
233 HENRIETTA CIOBA
c) the third subgroup: A B B A; ending in a E.g. 25
Sâmbriaş, Irén Kiss (65), 2012, coll. H.C.
Szomszédasszony, hallja-e, hallja-e? Feri fiát szeretni hagyja-e? Ha nem hagyja, zárja be a pitvarába, Hogy ne fájjon a szép menyecske szíve rája.55 E.g. 26
Sâmbriaş, Irén Kiss (65), 2012, coll. H.C.
55 The translation of the lyrics is: The thunder struck from the direction of Hermany / Can’t figure out what is wrong with my sweetheart / No matter how I hug her dearly / She just turns away and sigh so heavily. // Dear neighbour, dear neighbour hear me!/ If I love your Feri son will you approve of me? / If no one is good enough for your Feri / Close him up and take us out of misery.
234 ETHNOGRAPHIC AND FOLK MUSIC TRADITIONS OF JOBBÁGYTELKE (SÂMBRIAŞ) - III. PART
Aranyos kis Bözsikém, amíg hezzád jártam, Az ablakod alatt sokat áztam-fáztam. De én aztot nem hányom szemedre, Él még a jó anyád, juttassa eszedbe.56 E.g. 27
Sâmbriaş, Irén Kiss (65), 2012, coll. H.C.
Hej, este későn tizet ütött az óra, Én még mindég csavargok a faluba. Csavargok én mert nem tudok (bírok) elaludni, Hej, fáj a szívem, a szerelem gyötöri.57 E.g. 28
Sâmbriaş, Irén Kiss (65), 2012, coll. H.C.
56 The translation of the lyrics is: Dear Betsy, while I courted you / I saw a many lads under your window / They all stood and smelt the primroses / While inside I gave you kiss after kiss.// Dear Betsy, while I courted you/ I suffered many a bad weather for you./ But I won’t blame you for that,/ Your mother will tell you, she remembers well. 57 The translation of the lyrics is: Well, the clock has turned ten in the night / The cattle is coming home from the village site / I spread my kerchief on the iron bed / And one hundred times I think of my beloved. // Well, the clock has turned ten in the night / And I’m still wandering through the village site./ I’m wandering aimlessly for I can’t sleep,/ My love for that good looking girl is so deep.
235 HENRIETTA CIOBA
Árkolják a jobbágytelki temetőt, Engem temessenek oda legelőbb. Engem előbb, azután a göndörhajú babámat, Hogy ne tartson több szeretőt magának.
Nyitva van a barna kislány ablaka, Barna legény sírva sétál alatta. Olyan búsan, bánatosan zokogja ki azt a szót: Hogy Nyisd ki, csárdás kisangyalom az ajtót.
Nem nyitom ki mert nem adnak tehozzád, S Most készítik a menyasszonyi ruhát. Ahhoz adnak kit a szívem, már a szívem nem szeret, Öngyilkosa leszek az életemnek.58
E.g. 29
Sâmbriaş, Irén Kiss (65), 2012, coll. H.C.
58 The translation of the lyrics is: Brown-haired girl you’re a maiden no more / And with that the happiness of those times is gone/ I left my maiden happiness at the altar / I cannot undo that, it’s all gone. // They are ditching in Sâmbriaș the cemetery,/ I want to have the very first grave there, please/ First me, then my curly haired honey / So she cannot have another one but me.// The window of the brown-haired beauty is cracking/ The brown- haired boy is walking under it sobbing./ He just cried and so quiet is his whisper: / Dear, please, crack your door for me open.// I cannot open the well locked door/ They are preparing my bridal gown./ They will force me to marry someone I don’t love, / I’ll kill myself, such a life I will not have.
236 ETHNOGRAPHIC AND FOLK MUSIC TRADITIONS OF JOBBÁGYTELKE (SÂMBRIAŞ) - III. PART
Hej, de nem idevaló születésű vagyok én, Messzeföldről vándoroltam ide én. Így jár aki messzeföldről idevándorol, Sej, haj, nincs babája ki vállára boruljon.
Jaj, de harmatos a törökbúza levele, Utoljára jártam nálad az este. Utoljára fogtam meg az ajtód húzóját, Sej, haj, szervusz, babám, kívánok jó éjszakát.59 E.g. 30
Sâmbriaş, Mrs. Elek Balla (41), 1965, coll. István Almási 60 E.g. 31
Sâmbriaş, József Simó (62), 1965, coll. István Almási 61
59 The translation of the lyrics is: The meadow is alreay mowed/ The turtle-dove had her right wing cut off / Turtle-dove do not mind your right wing/ For see I don’t mind my old sweetheart either. // Hey, I was not born in this village/ I came here from a far away place/ This is the faith of all the wandering strangers/ They do not have a sweetheart to comfort them.// Oh, how dewy are the leaves of the einkorn/ I saw you last in the evening yesterday./ It was the last time I grabbed the handle of your door that night/ Well, farewell my darling, just sleep tight. 60 The translation of the lyrics is: I’ll let my goose out to the meadow / And in fact with it I’d better go / The goose goes on shouting in advance: / Dear Mary come into my arms at once.
237 HENRIETTA CIOBA
ending in g. E.g. 32
Sâmbriaş, Gáspár Bereczki, sr. (49), 2016, coll. H.C.
Kiesett a gyöngyvirágos kalap a fejemből, Kitagadott babám a szívéből. Kitagadott, mégsem vagyok olyan árva, Keresek én más szeretőt a jövő nyárára.
Kelet felöl, észak (nyugat) felöl jönnek a huszárok, Jaj, de szépen szól a trombitájuk. Egy közülük bánatosan fújja, hogy Én a tied, te az enyém úgyse leszünk soha.62
61 The translation of the lyrics is: There is an endless lake in front of our house / There are two coffins fluttering on its surface / The shroud from my coffin can be seen / It writes on it : Sweetheart it was in vain loving me. 62 The translation of the lyrics is: A bush of rose, red rose bent out in the street / Come and pick one from there oh sweetheart / No, I won’t I do not need your rose / For we’ll never be one pair, that’s for sure. // The flowery bouquet fell off my hat/ My honey will not have me as her man./ If she will not have me that’s her problem/ By next summer I’ll surely have another girl.// Troops come right from east and right from north (west)/ They blow their trumpets beautifully./ But one blow there is full of sorrow, full of pain:/ For my darling we will never be a pair.
238 ETHNOGRAPHIC AND FOLK MUSIC TRADITIONS OF JOBBÁGYTELKE (SÂMBRIAŞ) - III. PART
E.g. 33
Sâmbriaş, Irén Kiss (65), 2012, coll. H.C.
Hej, minek nékem a szombat estét várnom, Ha a babám nem jön vígasztalón. Vígasztalom magam ahogy lehet, Hej, érted, babám, szidtak már eleget.63
E.g. 34
Sâmbriaş, Mrs. Elek Balla (41), 1965, coll. István Almási 64
63 The translation of the lyrics is: What a great, what a wonderful field of wheat / There’s a gorgeaus single rose in the middle of it / Whoever gets to harvest that field of wheat / He will have the best of roses and that’s it. // What’s the use for me to wait for Saturday night/ If my sweetheart does not come by./ I’ll manage as good as I can without him/ Even though I was criticized much for him. 64 The translation of the lyrics is: Under the mountain back in Markod / There are three girls who do the harvest / I am the helper of one of them / It’s no good a lad that has no sweetheart.
239 HENRIETTA CIOBA
ending in c E.g. 35
Sâmbriaş, Gáspár Bereczki, sr. (49), 2016, coll. H.C.
Két pántlikát nehéz csokorba kötni, Nem akar a kisangyalom szeretni. Félre akarja a szerelmét tenni, Meg kell az én bús szívemnek hasadni.65 E.g. 36
Sâmbriaş, Mrs. Elek Balla (41), 1965, coll. István Almási 66
65 The translation of the lyrics is: At Sâmbriaș they make the best of bread / A girl just eighteen years is my sweetheart / She is only so young, just eighteen / That is why so many people are mad at me. // It is hard to make a bouquet out of two ribbons/ My darling says she cannot see a future for us./ She says she does not really love me / But my heart will surely die off within me.
240 ETHNOGRAPHIC AND FOLK MUSIC TRADITIONS OF JOBBÁGYTELKE (SÂMBRIAŞ) - III. PART
d) the fourth subgroup: A A B A; ending in a E.g. 37
Sâmbriaş, Irén Kiss (65), 2012, coll. H.C. 67 E.g. 38
Sâmbriaş, Boldizsár Miklós (77), 2014, coll. H.C. 68
66 The translation of the lyrics is: I was recruited, I have to go away / And I have to leave my sweetheart to who knows whom / So I’d rather live her to you, my best friend/ Out of all I’d rather have you take care of her. 67 The translation of the lyrics is: Dust rises on the Csereszegi road when I pass through / My sweetheart opens her window when I look though / Yes, honey, do open your window and please listen to my lamentation / For a recruite has many grievances and no one that listen would.
241 HENRIETTA CIOBA
E.g. 39
Sâmbriaş, Mrs. László Balla (67), 1965, coll. István Almási 69
ending in g. E.g. 40
Sâmbriaş, Irén Kiss (65), 2012, coll. H.C.
68 The translation of the lyrics is: The shepherd plays on his flute, sorrow in his heart / He does not mind his own mother just his orphan state / Hey, I am orphan, even God could see it / May all the curse befall on those who the orphans maltreat. 69 The translation of the lyrics is: My chestnut horse has been lost in the silky woods / I looked for him so long and hard I wore off two boots / Don’t you look for your dear chestnut for it’s been taken / They put a tinkler on it in Toplita in a stable.
242 ETHNOGRAPHIC AND FOLK MUSIC TRADITIONS OF JOBBÁGYTELKE (SÂMBRIAŞ) - III. PART
Kiöntött a Maros vize homokos partjára, Körös-körül beültettem szomorú fűzfával. Szomorú fűz hervadt ága ráhajlik az én síromra, Télen-nyáron bánatában ki van virágozva.
Keresik a, keresik a keresztlevelemet, Még a pap se, még a pap se kapja a nevemet. Majd megkapja, majd megkapja aztat Sztálin elvtárs maga, Aki engem besorozott harminchat hónapra.70 E.g. 41
Sâmbriaş, Éva Bereczki (21), 2016, coll. H.C. 71
Example no. 68 belongs to class C in Bartók’s classification (no. 299) and there is a superscript of a variant of 12 syllables; in the collections published later this tune was classified into the group of the new style tunes. In the type catalogue edited by Járdányi (vol. II) only the variant with the 12 syllables is included (no. 164).
70 The translation of the lyrics is: The forest wuthers, the fields wuther, why I wonder / For the recruits of Sâmbriaș march trough it and wail / They brought the news today: recruited we all have been / So my sweetheart I came to say farewell to thee.// The waters of the river Mureș are overflown/ I have planted some willow trees on the shore./ The branches of the trees will die and cover my grave /Out of sorrow they have flowers whether it’s November or May.// They are looking, looking hard for my birth papers/ But not even the priest can find even my name./ Still comrade Stalin managed to find my name / And have me enrolled for thirty-six months straight. 71 The translation of the lyrics is: Forest, forest, forest, round Mures forest / Birds are living there, twelve is their number/The one that can sing my sweethearts name gets a candy / Honey, honey, for you my heart is longing.
243 HENRIETTA CIOBA
4.8. Popular folk songs “The term ‘popular folk songs’ refers to folk songs of the 19th century that became popular over the entire Hungarian territory. As far as the period of their origin, that needs to be established to 2 or 3 decades before the beginning of the 19th century and the end of this period is also 2 or 3 decades into the 20th century. […] We are discussing here songs that had either an anonymous, mostly urban author, but sometimes even the author is known and they became popular both in urban and rural areas.”72 The number of popular folk songs collected in Sâmbriaş is markedly higher than the old style songs. According to structural traits these songs can be divided into two groups: songs with a repetitive structure and songs with various other structures.
4.8.1. Songs with a repetitive structure The classification criteria are the same as in the case of the new style.
4.8.1.1. Arched melodic line Every tune is in a major key. The main closure is at pitch 5 and the closing note of line 3 is variable. In the case of some tunes built on transposition by a fifth the initial motif of lines 2 and 3 is different from the surrounding lines. Structural formulas: a) A 5 5 A or A B/A B/A A E.g. 42
Sâmbriaş, Irén Kiss (65), 2012, coll. H.C. 73
72 György Kerényi: Népies dalok, Akadémiai Kiadó, Budapest, 1961, Bevezető, p. 5. 73 The translation of the lyrics is: The cumin is black, but its flower is so white / The young lad drinks wine and his face is so red / All the girls think he is gorgeaus/ Girls think that, but love turned him so mad.
244 ETHNOGRAPHIC AND FOLK MUSIC TRADITIONS OF JOBBÁGYTELKE (SÂMBRIAŞ) - III. PART
E.g. 43
Sâmbriaş, Irén Kiss (65), 2012, coll. H.C. E.g. 44
Sâmbriaş, Mrs. Sándor Bakó (72), 1965, coll. István Almási 74
b) A A5 B A E.g. 45
Sâmbriaş, Mrs. László Balla (67), 1965, coll. István Almási 75
74 The translation of the lyrics is: Forest, forest, a nice round forest, / The fire-bird is its only ranger / The fire-bird and the nightingale / My sweetheart is gorgeaus how should I leave her.
245 HENRIETTA CIOBA
E.g. 46 c) A B B A
Sâmbriaş, Irén Kiss (65), 2012, coll. H.C.
Enyed felöl, Brassó felöl jön egy személyvonat, Szolgabíró nézz ki az ablakon. Szolgabíró tedd le a pennádat, Ne kederítsd, ne szomorítsd az édesanyákat.76
E.g. 47
Sâmbriaş, Irén Kiss (65), 2012, coll. H.C.
75 The translation of the lyrics is: In the village of Simonyi there’s a mill / That mill grounds only sorrow and grief / I have some sorrow myself / I’ll take it there to leave it off. 76 The translation of the lyrics is: Troops come right from east and right from north (west)/ They blow their trumpets beautifully./ But one blow there is full of sorrow, full of pain:/ For my darling we will never be a pair.//A slow train is coming from Aiud and from Brașov/ Constable look out of the window,/ Constable put down your pen and listen to me/ Stop bringing sorrow to all the mothers in the district.
246 ETHNOGRAPHIC AND FOLK MUSIC TRADITIONS OF JOBBÁGYTELKE (SÂMBRIAŞ) - III. PART
Új a csizmám, fel van a szegre akasztva, Sarkantyúját megette a rozsga. Összeverem olyan legény módra, Mind egy szálig lepereg a rozsda róla.77 E.g. 48
Sâmbriaş, Irén Kiss (65), 2012, coll. H.C. 78
E.g. 49
Sâmbriaş, Gáspár Bereczki, sr. (47), 2014, coll. H.C.
77 The translation of the lyrics is: I’ve got new boots the cobbler of Szeged made it / And it has got spurs from Szeged on it / And when I stand up and tall/ All the rust falls off them both.// I’ve got new boots hanging on the wall,/ But their spurs are rusty all./ Yet when I stand up and tall/ All the rust falls off them both. 78 The translation of the lyrics is: Dear mother let me go, let me go to the ball / I saw there my sweetheart dressed in white all/ He is in white, he is in white but his eyes are black / I wish he were my fionce, had asked for my hand.
247 HENRIETTA CIOBA
Mind azt mondják a faluban, hogy én büszke legény vagyok, Pedig én még a faluban szeretőt sem tartok. Ha tartottam szép szeretőt, megszenvedtem érte, Állj meg, világ, furcsa világ, ne vesd többet a szememre.
Kimentem a kiskertembe, hej, kék ibolyát szedni, Ott hallottam kakukk madárt szépen kakukkolni. Szólj még egyet, kakukk madár, a többit megvárom, Életemben kit szerettem, hej, nem lehet a párom.79
E.g. 50
Sâmbriaş, Irén Kiss (65), 2012, coll. H.C.
Olyan ez a legény mintha mind bort inna, Azt hiszik a lányok, hogy pünkösdi rózsa. Azt hiszik a lányok,sej, haj, hogy pünkösdi rózsa, Pedig a szerelem lángja lobog rajta.80
79 The translation of the lyrics is: .On the road to my home village, on the way/ My short legged boots got dirty with the mud and clay / The boots got so dirty with the mud and clay / Proud girls from my home village I say farewell. // People consider me a proud lad / Although my sweetheart is not a village girl./ When I had a sweetheart from the village they laughed me off/ I’ll show them what I am capable of.// I went out to my garden to pick some violets / And I heard the cuckoo bird singing on its nest. / Just keep singing dear cuckoo I can wait / As waiting for the girl who cannot marry me I have. 80 The translation of the lyrics is: The cumin is black, but its flower is so white / The young lad drinks wine and his face is ro red / All the girls think he is gorgeaus/ Girls think that, but love turned him so mad.//This lad looks like he had some wine/ Girls think of him as being divine,/ Girls you just keep thinking that/ But I know that love turned him so mad.
248 ETHNOGRAPHIC AND FOLK MUSIC TRADITIONS OF JOBBÁGYTELKE (SÂMBRIAŞ) - III. PART
E.g. 51
Sâmbriaş, Irén Kiss (65), 2012, coll. H.C.
Hajnalodik, mégsem akar virradni, Kelj fel, babám, el akarok búcsúzni. Fel is kelek, fel biz’ én, mert nem bírok aludni, Fáj a szívem mér’ tudtalak szeretni.
Éjfél után hármat ütött az óra, S én még mindig ballagok a faluba. Ballagok én, seje haj, mert nem bírok (tudok) aludni, Fáj a szívem már’ tudtalak szeretni.81
E.g. 52
81 The translation of the lyrics is: Last night I could not sleep but one hour / I was listening to the laments of my sweetheart / He told me what is wrong just at midnight / He loves me, but his mother me does not like.//It breaks for dawn, but the sky is still dark / Honey wake up for form thee I take part./ I will rise up for I cannot sleep myself / I’m so sorry eyes for you I ever had.// The clock stroke three after midnight / And I’m still walking through the village sight / I’m wandering about for sleep I can’t / I’m so sorry eyes for you I ever had.
249 HENRIETTA CIOBA
Sâmbriaş, Irén Kiss (65), 2012, coll. H.C.
Hej, most kezdtem én rámás csizmát viselni, Most kezdtem egy barna legényt szeretni. Azt a legényt én is más is szereti, Hej, meg kell az én bús szívemnek repedni (szakadni).
Hej, két ága van a zavaros Tiszának, Közepibe van egy madár leszállva. Két szárnyával veri széjjel a vizet, Hej, most tudtam meg, hogy a babám nem szeret.82
E.g. 53
Sâmbriaş, Margit Szántó (16), 1965, coll. István Almási 83
82 The translation of the lyrics is: My own mother, she did curse me so badly / Not to find neither a homeland nor a honey / That the thorny bushes would be my rest / And even that rest would never last. // I just started wearing the wrinkled boots / And I started feeling for a handsome boy./ But I found there’s someone else feeling too / My heart aches so, I will die out of woe.// The muddy Tisza river has two branches/ Among them a bird is settled and ranges/ The bird keeps the two branches parted/ I just found out my sweetheart is disaffected. 83 The translation of the lyrics is: I’ve got the notice, I’ve been summoned / I read my name with tears and mad / For it was written all over the notice / My sweetheart I part for good from thee.
250 ETHNOGRAPHIC AND FOLK MUSIC TRADITIONS OF JOBBÁGYTELKE (SÂMBRIAŞ) - III. PART
4.8.1.2. Tunes with a deeper main closure In several tunes having structure A B B A the main closure is at pitch 2. In some of the tunes the first and last line of the stanza reach pitch V., deeper then the finalis, which turns the major into plagal. E.g. 54
Sâmbriaş, Éva Bereczki (21), 2016, coll. H.C.84
E.g. 55
Sâmbriaş, Irén Kiss (65), 2012, coll. H.C.
Vásárhelyré bészaladt egy gyors vonat, Tizenhárom kislány előmbe szaladt. Mind a tizenhárom talpig fehérbe, s az Én szeretőm öltözött feketébe.
Nem bánom én akárhogy dörög az ég, Mer’ az én búzámat nem veri a jég. Mer’ ami kevés vót azt is eladtam, s a Jobbágytelki Ákos-bárban megittam.85
84 The translation of the lyrics is: The wheat was not even ripe and tall / The doves already ate it all / They took away all the wheat / My honey for her another did find.
251 HENRIETTA CIOBA
E.g. 56
Sâmbriaş, Bakó Péter (54), 1965, coll. István Almási 86
E.g. 57
Sâmbriaş, Irén Kiss (65), 2012, coll. H.C.
Jobbágytelki hármashatár, Bolond aki leányhoz jár. Mer’ én menyecskékhez járok, Úgyis szeretnek a lányok.87
85 The translation of the lyrics is: There are thirteen tiers on my skirt/ I was certain in the summer I’d be a bride/ But it seems that is not the case / So twelve tiers cut off I will have. // The fast train for Târgu Mureș just got in / Thirteen maidens ran here to receive me./ All thirteen are dressed in white,/ Only my honey came out in black.// I don’t care what the weather will be like/ My crops by the ice cannot be ruined/ For the little I even had I already sold/ And in the Akos Bar of Sâmbriaș I drank the money, all. 86 The translation of the lyrics is: It sure seems I will be let off home / God is my witness that I will return/ Two shiny stars show the way to my homeland / I have not seen my sweetheart in full three years. 87 The translation of the lyrics is: In Sâmbriaș before the Community Center/ A wallnut tree with three branches has grown/ It has three branches and six leaves / My sweetheart is unfaithful to me.// In Sâmbriaș all the lands are, well, threefold/ Courting a girl is the maddest thing to be done/ Therefore I’m courting married women/ And meanwhile the girls like me anyway.
252 ETHNOGRAPHIC AND FOLK MUSIC TRADITIONS OF JOBBÁGYTELKE (SÂMBRIAŞ) - III. PART
E.g. 58
Sâmbriaş, Gergely Bakó (64), 1965, coll. István Almási 88
In the following two tunes in the minor key the main closure is at pitch b3.
E.g. 59
Sâmbriaş, József Simó (62), 1965, coll. István Almási 89
88 The translation of the lyrics is: The fire-bird is shedding its plum / This girl after her sweetheart so sighs / She is crying heartbreakingly indeed / For Saturday night they were not allowed to speak. 89 The translation of the lyrics is: This young girl was not of a mother born/ She out of a walnut tree has grown/ She grew out of the highest branch / But now she’s bent to the ground out of heartache.
253 HENRIETTA CIOBA
E.g. 60
Sâmbriaş, Sándor Balla (57), 1965, coll. István Almási 90
E.g. 61
Sâmbriaş, Gáspár Bereczki, sr. (49), 2016, coll. H.C.
Jeges a sudárfa, nehéz vizet merni Ismeretlen leányt nehéz megölelni. Ölelni akarom, nem hajlik a gyönge karom, Csókolni akarom, nem az én galambom.91
90 The translation of the lyrics is: The sky is full of clouds around / Can’t figure out what is wrong with my sweetheart / No matter how I hug her dearly / She just turns away and sigh so heavily. 91 The translation of the lyrics is: The plough does not work the land for its own sake / Neither does a mother a daughter for her make./ And has she made it entirely to herself / She should lock her up and not let her meet with lads.//Frozen chain in the well, It’s weary to draw water,/ If you don’t know a girl, it’s weary to hug her./ I want to hug her, but my arms just weaken, / I want to kiss her, it turns out it’s not her.
254 ETHNOGRAPHIC AND FOLK MUSIC TRADITIONS OF JOBBÁGYTELKE (SÂMBRIAŞ) - III. PART
Bartók published in class B a popular folk song having the structure A A B A with a tune of plagal third.92 (example no. 62.)
E.g. 6293
IV. Jobbágytelke (Maros-Torda), Balog Teréz (17), 1914.;B.
E.g. 63
Sâmbriaş, Margit Szántó (16), 1965, coll. István Almási 94
92 Béla Bartók: A magyar népdal, no. 143. György Kerényi, 189. 93 The translation of the lyrics is: Well in our village there is a new custom / Girls don’t pick anymore cherries in a basket, / Rather a lad climbs the tree, all the way up the tree / And he shakes it, then you honey pick up the cherry. 94 The transation of the lyrics is: Vilma Szabo strolled out to the forest / And under the citrus tree she had a rest / I saw her and I thus warned her too / Get up, Vilma, for someone might notice you.
255 HENRIETTA CIOBA
4.8.2. Tunes with various other structures
a) Chainlike structure E.g. 64
Sâmbriaş, Mrs. László Balla (67), 1965, coll. István Almási 95
The author of example no. 91 is Hungarian singer Lujza Blaha (1850-1926). She was very successful acting and singing in popular folk dramas and operettas. She was the most important artist and advertiser of the Hungarian popular folk dramas so spread in the second part of the 19th century.96 The actual form of the tune is a four-lined chainlike structure: A B C D; in this example the last line is repeated. Its melodic line ends in e; in line 4 there is a extended second by raising pitch 3. E.g. 65
95 The translation of the lyrics is: This evening is the last one / To this place I’ll never come / Well, green oak leaf, oak leaf, / It don’t rustle without a wind / Thank you for thus far loving me. 96 György Kerényi? no. 152 and note
256 ETHNOGRAPHIC AND FOLK MUSIC TRADITIONS OF JOBBÁGYTELKE (SÂMBRIAŞ) - III. PART
Sâmbriaş, Miklós Bakó (42), 1965, coll. István Almási 97
Example no. 65 has a tune that is similar to the popular folk songs and today it is sang only with the lyrics of an outlaw’s ballad preserved by the folk.98 It has a chainlike structure: A B C D.
E.g. 66
Sâmbriaş, Éva Bereczki (21), 2016, coll. H.C. 99
97 The translation of the lyrics is: It is raining, it is drizzling quietly / Imre Bogar his sorrow off in the tavern is drinking / Innkeeper you send me here your best wine / And I want your fairest daughter as guardian. 98 György Kerényi: Appendix II (letter notation) p. 233. 99 The translation of the lyrics is: The black grapes, the black grapes / Have already ripened / Don’t go there sweetheart / He’ll catch you, the warden.
257 HENRIETTA CIOBA
E.g. 67
Sâmbriaş, Gáspár Bereczki (49), coll. H.C. 100
Repeated line structure: Example no. 68: A A B C Example no. 69 : A B B C E.g. 68
Sâmbriaş, Kálmán Orbán, jr. (25), 2016, coll. H.C.
Rég megmondtam, kisangyalom, csalfa ne légy, A lábadra magassarkú cipőt ne végy. Magassarkú cipőt vettél, A falu csalfája lettél.
Szerettelek kisangyalom egy ideig, Csütörtöktől vasárnapig, másfél évig, Szeretett a fene soha, Csak megvoltam véled szokva.
100 The translation of the lyrics is: Red velvet of Sâmbriaș / My sweetheart is a fine girl / The apples are beautiful / But my sweetheart is the greatest of all.
258 ETHNOGRAPHIC AND FOLK MUSIC TRADITIONS OF JOBBÁGYTELKE (SÂMBRIAŞ) - III. PART
Ez az utca bánat utca, bánat utca, Bánat kővel van kirakva, van kirakva. Azt is az én régi babám rakta, Hogy én sírva járjak rajta.
Nem járok én, nem járok én sírva rajta, Járjon aki, járjon aki kirakatta. Nem járok én soha sírva rajta, Járjon aki kirakatta.101
E.g. 69
Sâmbriaş, Éva Bereczki (21), 2016, coll. H.C.
Búra, búra, búbánatra születtem, Nem is édesanyám nevelt fel engem Nem is édes, nem is egész mostoha Azt szerettem akit nem kellett volna.
Száraz fából könnyű hidat csinálni, Jaj de bajos igaz szívre találni Olyan bajos igaz szívre találni Mint a halnak víz fenekére szállni.
101 The translation of the lyrics is: I’ve got two great black horses / One of them drink off I will / And that I will not regret / Only that love you I ever had. // I told you dear you should not be sloty / Leave the high heeled shoes be./ But you had to have high heels / Now you are the slot of the village.// There was a time when I really loved you, honey/ From Thursday till Sunday, for a year and something,/ In fact it turns out I never really loved you/ It was just comfortable to be around you.// This is the street of deep sorrow, of deep sorrow,/ It is paved with bricks of deep woe, bricks of deep woe./ It was paved by my ex-lover/ So I cry when I pass over.// But I’m far for passin’ it crying/ I leave that to whoever made it./ I’m never ever passin’ it crying/ I leave that to whoever made it.
259 HENRIETTA CIOBA
Jaj de fenn van az a boldog mennyország Még onnan is lerepülnék tehozzád Megkérdezném, hogy mér akarsz elhagyni Mikor én még most akarlak szeretni.
Keserű víz nem hittem, hogy édes légy, Te meg babám nem hittem, hogy csalfa légy Csalfasággal csaltad meg, csaltad meg a szívemet A jóisten borítsa rád az eget.
Két zsebkendőt adtam néked emlékbe Régi babám arról jussak eszedbe Ha elszakad a zsebkendő tudd meg azt Nem élhetünk sem több nyarat, sem tavaszt.
Árok, árok, de mély árokba estem Rólad babám minden gondom levettem Úgy levettem, hogy még eszembe se jutsz Jóságodért fizessen meg a Jézus.
Édesanyám de szépen felneveltél Mikor engem két karodon rengettél Akkor mondtad jó leszek katonának Rabja lettem széles e nagy világnak.
Úgy elmegyek mint egy szegény vándorló Kinek az élete elveszni való Rászállnék egy zöld leveles bokorra Fészket raknék, hogy el ne felejts soha
Ha felmegyek erre a magos nagy hegyre Feltekintek a csillagos nagy égre Csillagos ég merre van, merre van az én hazám Merre sirat engem az édesanyám.
Édesanyám ha fel akarsz keresni A jobbágytelki temetőbe gyere ki Megtalálod síromat, síromat egy fa alatt Édesanyám kisírhatod magadat.102
102 The translation of the lyrics is: The colourful rainbow bends over the sky / You just showed me you don’t love me anymore / If you do not that’s not my fault, not at all / I cannot turn into a tulip or a rose. // Sorrow, sorrow, that is what my life is for/ I was not even raised by my own mother/ She
260 ETHNOGRAPHIC AND FOLK MUSIC TRADITIONS OF JOBBÁGYTELKE (SÂMBRIAŞ) - III. PART
The song beginning Szép szivárvány koszorúzza az eget is one of Sâmbriaş’s most popular tunes. In the 20th century, when the folk dance ensemble participated to competitions it was included in every dance progamme, since then they consider it the village anthem. Its origin is unknown, but in the recordings and notes of Antal Balla there are pieces of information according to which the song has over thirty stanzas and he intended to record all the stanzas collecting them from the recollections of elderly people. Even though he did not manage to find out all stanzas, he succeeded in finding plenty, although they do not constitute a logical relation and sometimes even the number of syllables is odd. There may be also stanzas that started to be sung with other tunes. c) Extended structure: E.g. 70
was neither sweet, nor step among mothers/ I always loved the wrong people, the others.// It’s very easy to make a bridge of dried lumber/ But to find a true loving heart’s burdensome/ It’s so hard to find a true heart who will stay/ As for a fish to remain in the water bed.// The heaven they talk about’s so far away/ But I would come down from there even today/ Come to you I would and ask you ‘Why leave me?’/ When I have just begun to really love thee.// Sour water never turns into fresh stream/ I never took you as a cheat, not in my dreams/ But you are the most delusive of creatures/ May the smallpox come down on your features.// I gave you two handkerchiefs as memories/ Just remember you were my honey when these you see / But if they tear you should be certain that/ No more summers, no more springs we together have.// I fell into a ditch, a deep ditch/ Honey I completely forgot all you did/ I don’t even remember you ever, ever/ May you get back how you behaved earlier.// Dear mother how well you raised your son/ You gave me the comfort of your ams/ You sang to me that I’d make a great soldier/ And I turned in this great world a wanderer.// I take on the world as a true wanderer/ Someone who does not care where life takes turn/ I would be a humming bird nesting a tree/ So that you could always remember me.// When I go up to this high towering mountain/ I look up straight to the million stars on the sky/ Tell me, bright stars, where does my homeland lay/ Where does my mother a tear for me shed.// Dear mother if you want to find my grave/ Come out to Sâmbriaș to the graveyard/ There is a tree that bears all my names/ There you can shed your tears and pray my grace.
261 HENRIETTA CIOBA
Sâmbriaş, Éva Bereczki (21), 2016, coll. H.C. 103
Kerényi mentions in note no. 25 p. 210 the adaptation of the Ungarische Tänze by Brahms. In the second stanza the initial motifs imitate one sixth higher the first stanza. Type 54 in the MNTK (CHFT) IV. - does not mention such extended form. Everybody in the village knows this song. Similarly to the song beginning Szép szivárvány koszorúzza az eget there is no dance program or dance party where they would not sing it. If they have got musicians, it is sung with accompaniment and they dance the turn step to it.
4.9. Tunes of foreign origin Example no. 71 is a dance tune of German origin. Almási István makes reference in a note to the instrumental German variant entitled „Siebenschtitt” (translated „Seven Steps” (example no.71b.).104 E.g. 71a
Sâmbriaş, Bakó Péter (54), 1965, coll. István Almási 105
103 The translation of the lyrics is: I want my sweetheart when she comes / To find me as with a dozen oxen I plough / The oxen plough the land not for themselves / Neither do mothers raise girls for their own sakes.//They raise them nicely/ They see them marry / Then beaten freely /At the man’s free will.// Stop beating her son / You did not raise her / At Penticost day, oh / The stork just brought her. 104 Herţea ─ Almási: no. 32., instrumental variant: no. 70.
262 ETHNOGRAPHIC AND FOLK MUSIC TRADITIONS OF JOBBÁGYTELKE (SÂMBRIAŞ) - III. PART
E.g. 71b
Example no. 72 has three lines. In the collection of folk songs by Kodály ─ Vargyas this tune is classified in the group Tunes taken over from our neighbours as a tune borrowed from the Slovakians.106 According to the note under the tune, it was formed from some of the Hungarian popular folk songs dropping the first line and in this form it was borrowed back by Hungarian folk music. It was classified into the group of three-lined tunes also in the collection by Jagamas ─ Faragó.107
E.g. 72
Sâmbriaş, Sándor Balla (57), 1965, coll. István Almási 108
105 The translation of the lyrics is: My grandpa was so wealthy / He a big farm has left me / Six oxen and a wagon / The tiller from three pitchforks. 106 Kodály ─ Vargyas: no. 489. 107 Jagamas ─ Faragó: no. 272. 108 The translation of the lyrics: There’s a wild apple tree in front of our house / I can see three ripe apples right on the top branch / I can see three ripe apples right on the top branch.
263 HENRIETTA CIOBA
Conclusion As a conclusion we can state that Sâmbriaş is a village that is preserving its traditions. The late Antal Balla played a major role in the cultural life of the village, but since he did not have any musical studies, the village can be considered rather dance-focused. The villagers did not manage to make a living out of the traditional agricultural work, therefore they started trading and manufacturing (straw hat twinning). This contributed to the early industrialization of the village. Among the folk songs of the village there are few old style, pentatonic scale tunes, which is probably due to the fact that many villagers worked in the urban area and abroad. In the lifetime of Antal Balla they learned to perform folk plays and took advantage of the events offered by urban culture: they went several times to see operas and theatrical performances. The object of the study hereby was that I personally would go out to a village to collect traditions and folk songs as the great researchers of folk music did before me. Besides this I wanted to learn and practice the manner the pieces of information collected are to be processed. I believe I succeeded in reaching these objectives. And I intend to continue the work I have begun.
Translated from Hungarian by Zsuzsa Danel
REFERENCES
Books:
Az erdélyi és moldvai magyarság népi tánczenéje (Folk Dances of the Hungarians from Transylvania and from Moldavia), Teleki László Alapítvány, Budapest, 1993. Bartók Béla ─ Kodály Zoltán, A Magyar Népzene Tára (Collection of Hungarian Folk Music) I. Gyermekjátékok (Children’s Games), edited by: György Kerényi. Akadémiai Kiadó, Budapest, 1951. Bartók Béla ─ Kodály Zoltán, A Magyar Népzene Tára (Collection of Hungarian Folk Music) II. Jeles napok (Special Days), edited by: György Kerényi, Akadémiai Kiadó, Budapest, 1953.
264 ETHNOGRAPHIC AND FOLK MUSIC TRADITIONS OF JOBBÁGYTELKE (SÂMBRIAŞ) - III. PART
Bartók Béla ─ Kodály Zoltán, A Magyar Népzene Tára (Collection of Hungarian Folk Music) III. A-B Lakodalom (A-B Wedding), ed.: György Kerényi, Akadémiai Kiadó, Budapest, 1955 – 56. Bartók Béla ─ Kodály Zoltán, A Magyar Népzene Tára (Collection of Hungarian Folk Music) IV. Párosítók (Procuring Songs), edited by: György Kerényi, Akadémiai Kiadó, Budapest, 1959. Bartók Béla ─ Kodály Zoltán, A Magyar Népzene Tára (Collection of Hungarian Folk Music) XII. Népdaltípusok 7 (Folk Song Types 7), edited by: Katalin Paksa, Balassi Kiadó, Budapest, 2011. Bartók, Béla, A magyar népdal (Hungarian Folk Songs), in Bartók összegyűjtött írásai I. published by András Szöllősy, Zenemű Kiadó, Budapest, 1966. Bartók, Béla, IV. Melodien der rumanischen Colinde (Weihnachtslieder) (Tunes of the Romanian Colinde (Carols), Editio Musica, Budapest, 1968. Drăgoi, Sabin, 303. Colinde cu text si melodie (303 Carols with Lyrics and Music), Scrisul Romanesc, Craiova, (1925?) Herţea, Iosif – Almási, István, 245 Melodii de joc - Népi táncdallam - Tanzmelodien (245 Folk Dance Tunes), Casa Creatiei Populare - Népi Alkotások Háza, Targu-Mureş - Marosvásárhely, 1970. Jagamas, János – Faragó, József, Romániai magyar népdalok (Folk Songs of the Hungarians from Romania), Kriterion könyvkiadó, Bukarest, 1974. Járdányi, Pál, Magyar népdaltípusok (Hungarian Folk Song Types), I., II., Akadémiai kiadó, Budapest, 1961. Kerényi György, Népies dalok (Popular Folk Songs), Akadémiai kiadó, Budapest, 1961. Kodály, Zoltán, A magyar népzene (Hungarian Folk Music), the collection of folk songs was edited by Lajos Vargyas, Budapest, Zenemű kiadó, 1952. Kósa, László – Filep, Antal, A magyar nép táji - történeti tagolódása (The Historical-Idiomatic Segmentation of the Hungarian Folk Culture), Akadémiai kiadó, Budapest, 1975. Martin, György, Magyar Tánctípusok és táncdialektusok (Hungarian Dance Types and Dialects), no year of publication, Népművelődési propaganda iroda. Orbán, Balázs, A Székelyföld leírása (Tour Guide to Szeklerland), Helikon könyvkiadó, Pest, 1868. Szendreai, Janka ─ Dobszay László ─ Rajeczky Benjamin, XVI - XVII.századi dallamaink a népi emlékezetben (The 16th and 17th Century Tunes of the Hungarians as Preserved in the Folklore), Akadémiai Kiadó, Budapest, 1979.
265 HENRIETTA CIOBA
Szenik, Ilona, Népzenetudomány ─ Magyar és román népzene (Folk Music Studies - Hungarian and Romanian Folk Music), Erdélyi Tankönyvtanács kiadó, Kolozsvár, 1998. Szent vagy, Uram! (Holy, You Are Holy, Lord!), A Hymnary for Playing the Organ, Ősi és újabb egyházi énekkincsünk tára, Edited by: Artúr Harmat and Sándor Sík, A Szent István Társulat, Az Apostoli Szentségek Könyvkiadója, Budapest, 1993. Vargyas Lajos, A magyar vers ritmusa (The Rhythm of the Hungarian Poems), Akadémiai kiadó, Budapest, 1952. Volly István, Karácsonyi és Mária – énekek (Christmas Carols and Hymns to the Virgin Mary), Az Apostoli Szentszék Kiadója, Budapest 1982.
List of informers:
1. Irén Kiss 2. Mária Tóth 3. Boldizsár Miklós 4. Zsigmond Simó and his wife, Erzsébet 5. Berta Bereczki 6. Zsolt Bereczki 7. Gáspár Bereczki, sr. 8. Veronika Orbán 9. Kálmán Orbán
Sources used from the Internet:
Vitézi Ének Alapítvány (Vitézi Ének Foundation): http://www.falumuzeum.eu, http://falumuzeum.eu/a-muzeum, http://falumuzeum.eu/videok. Hungarológiai Alapkönyvtár (Basic Dictionary of Hungarology): Magyar néprajzi lexikon (Hungarian Ethnographical Encyclopedia), Akadémiai Kiadó, Budapest, 1977 – 1982, http://mek.niif.hu/02100/02115/html/index.html, Szekler dances: http://mek.niif.hu/02100/02115/html/4-1608.html. National Endowment for the Humanities: http://www.hymnary.org, http://www.hymnary.org/text/silent_night_holy_night_all_is_calm_all
266 STUDIA UBB MUSICA, LXIII, 2, 2018 (p. 267 – 277) (RECOMMENDED CITATION) DOI:10.24193/subbmusica.2018.2.17
SMALL AMBITUS – NEW STYLE CHRISTMAS CAROLS FROM THE TRANSYLVANIAN PLAIN
ZOLTÁN GERGELY1
SUMMARY. Folk music literature includes into the group called small ambitus new style all those melodies, which present a domination of tonal characteristics. Besides the two most well known and most popular examples of the Christmas carols repertoire from the Transylvanian Plain, there are also two other melodies, which were integrated into the local Christmas repertoire only in one single settlement.
Keywords: Christhmas Carols, Small Ambitus – New Style, Transylvanian Plain, local repertoires.
In the fourth chapter of volume I of the MNTK (A Magyar népdaltípusok katalógusa [Catalogue of Hungarian Folk Song Types]) we can find those melodies, which have a structure dominated by tonal relations, opposed to the modal character of the old melodies. Also, the third and second sequences are quite frequent here on the level of certain melody lines as well as of the repetition of motifs.
Example 1. The origin of the group of stories on the holy family looking for a place to sleep was first debated by Tekla Dömötör, then by Ildikó Kríza. Rooted also in apocryphal literature, the works of popular poets and cantors – including the motif of the miraculous healing of the blind girl – were spread especially by 19th century pulp literature and the blind beggars.2 Some motifs of this text type can be found massively also in the Romanian carol poetry3.
1 PhD, Researcher of the Folklore Institute of the Romanian Academy in Cluj / Kolozsvár, E-mail: [email protected] 2 Dömötör Tekla 1983. 110–119. Kríza Ildikó 1982. 77–79.; a text variant from Chibed: Ráduly János 1997. 131–132. 3 Pozsony Ferenc 2000. 76–78.
267 ZOLTÁN GERGELY
The Transylvanian pieces having the function of a Christmas carol are thematically identical. Joseph and Mary are looking for a place to sleep, thus they knock on the door of a rich blacksmith, who refuses them, saying that he already has many guests. In the end the blind daughter of the blacksmith leads them to a stable, where Jesus is born at midnight. Because of his heartlessness Mary curses the blacksmith, but also blesses/heals the blind girl. This story line is followed by the text of examples 1a, b, c. A variant from Chiochiș adds to the story a sequence from the type Holy Mary, the goodness and cruelty of trees and animals, and only then takes place the birth of Christ:
LefeküdtMária, [Mary went to sleep] A lovakjászlába. [Into the manger of horses.] A lovak mind nyerítettek, [The horses were all neighing,] NemnyugodtMária. [So, Mary could not rest.]
FelkeltSzűzMária, [Mary woke up] A lovakjászlához. [At the manger of horses.] ElmentSzűzMáriasírva, [She went crying] Az ökrökjászlába. [To the manger of oxen.]
LefeküdtMária, [Mary went to sleep] Az ökrökjászlába. [Into the manger of oxen.] Az ökrök mind lefeküdtek, [The oxen layed down,] Ésszépenkérőztek.4 [Chewing the cud nicely.]
The performance of the informant from Cămărașu misses the sequence of curse/blessing, therefore the accent is on the presentation of the great news, the birth of Jesus:
Ébredj, gazda, ébredj! [Wake up, master, wake up!] E jeleséjszakán. [On this glorious night.] Nézd meg mi van, kapudelőtt, [Look what`s in front of your gate,] Egyaranyalmafa. [A golden apple tree.]
Madarakrepdesik, [Birds are singing,] Angyalokhirdetik. [Angels are claiming.] MegszületettIstenFia, [The Son of God is born,] A világMegváltója.5 [Saviour of this world.]
4 Personal Archive: nr. 14e., Group, Chiochiș, Bistrița–Năsăud County, recorded by Gergely Zoltán, 2012. 5 Personal Archive: nr.14j., Cămărașu, Cluj County, Szabó (Tamási) Anna 84, recorded by Gergely Zoltán 2012.
268 SMALL AMBITUS – NEW STYLE CHRISTMAS CAROLS FROM THE TRANSYLVANIAN PLAIN
The melody of the song Karácsony estéjén / Elindult Mária [On Christmas Night / Mary has Started her Journey] belongs to the new style type of melodies with small ambitus. At Christmas it is one of the most frequently performed carols on the Transylvanian Plain, so in my collection I have 16 items. The tonal character of the melody is signalled by the sequence between the beginning of the first and the second line, plus the turns of common chord break up.6 The most important differences between the melody variants are illustrated by examples 1a, 1b and 1c. The general melody structure has four lines: AA3BC, the cadence order is 1 (1) 2 1. The structural difference is given by the repetition of the last line (1b, 1c), the difference of cadence order is 2 degree at the second line (1c), and the starting motif of the third line differs at variants 1a and 1b. At example 1c there is a difference in the number of syllables of the second line (6 syllables), while in the third verse there is a formal transformation, resulting in fact from the modified starting motif of line A and line C. This form is not a unique variant, as it can be found in other examples as well. E.g. 1 1a.Elindult Mária [Mary has Started her Journey]
Feldioara, Cluj County, Sütő Irma 62, recorded by Gergely Zoltán, 2012. 1b. Elindult Mária
Fizeșu Gherlii, Cluj County, Lapohos Margit 69, Lapohos Zsigmond 72, recorded by Gergely Zoltán, 2012.
6 MNTK I. 643–644. type IV (B)/139.; MNT II. 619–622. nr. 459–461., note 1129.
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1c. Egy karácsony este [One Christmas Night]
Buza, Cluj County, Eke (Simon) Mária 78, Czégér (Marha) Ilus 67, recorded by Gergely Zoltán, 2012.
Example 2. The ABCD structured, major hexachord scale carol Betlehemkisfalucskába [In the Small Village of Bethlehem]7 – with an exception from Szabolcs County – has been recorded in almost every Transylvanian settlement (the Transylvanian Plain, Călata Region, Odorhei Region, Ciuc Region, Moldavia), as in the more archaic villages it has been part of the Christmas repertoire up to our days. Example number 2 is related to a medieval Christmas song called Innatali Domini8, well known all over Europe, respectively to a 16th century song, which was edited for the first time in 1744, and since then it can be found in every edition of Reformed hymnals from Cluj, with the first line called Mondjatok dicséretet [Praise].9 The melody variants used in folk practice have no written sources, their survival is due to the preserving power of oral tradition. In the analysed examples we can find a few essential modifications. In example 2a the first line moving around the fifth note starts with a common chord break up, while examples 2b–2e start with the third note. Furthermore, the cadence of the first lines is not identical. As in some variants the structurally accentuated note falls on the seventh syllable, and not on the eighth, the cadence is on
7 MNT II. 653–654. nr. 519., 1135.; MNTK I. 598. IV(B)/ type 75.; Hungarian Academy of Sciences Folk Music Typological System number: 18.497.0/1. 8 RMDT II. 320. nr. 209., 598.; SZ–D–R I. 240. nr. F/9; SZ–D–R II. 109–110. nr. F/9.; MNTK I. 379. type III(B)/39.; Dobszay László 2006. 119–120. nr. 349. 9 RMDT I. 282. nr. 93., 643., SZ–D–R I. 52. nr. I/93 sz., SZ–D–R II. 24. nr. I/93.; Péter Éva 2008. 72. nr. 15., 115–117. nr. 53.
270 SMALL AMBITUS – NEW STYLE CHRISTMAS CAROLS FROM THE TRANSYLVANIAN PLAIN
the 4thdegree, but in most of the variants the melody rises or descends on the eighth syllable: within our examples on the eighth syllable the cadence jumps onto the 5thdegree (2b, 2c), or on the 4thdegree (2a, 2e), while in most cases on the first one (2d, 2g). The text Betlehem kis falucskában [In the Small Village of Bethlehem] was included in the Catholic religion textbooks at the beginning of the 20th century, and the melody was learnt by ear. According to István Volly, the author of the text was probably Adolf Mohl, a priest, poet and historian from Győr, who was in fact the author of several Christmas plays.10 The melody is known in several regions of Transylvania with the same text, which presents the most important events from the life of Christ: the story of his birth, the arrival of the three wise men, Jesus as a teacher, the story of passion, the resurrection, the ascending to heaven and the fulfilment of the Holy Spirit11. The related Romanian melody variants are known all over Transylvania, and the variant with the Romanian text (2c) was performed by a Hungarian informant, although the text is not related to Christmas.12
E.g. 2 2a. Betlehemkisfalujába
Feldioara, Cluj County, SalakMagdus 58, recorded by Gergely Zoltán, 2012.
10 Volly István 1982. 87–88. nr. 70–71., 279.; Móser Zoltán 1997. 102. 11 See also Kríza Ildikó 1982. 120–123. IldikóKríza includes the carol Betlehem kis falucskában into the group of so-calledJesus-songs. 12 Bartók Béla 1935. nr. 121 a–m., among which nr. 121e is from the Transylvanian Plain; Szenik Ilona – Bocşa, Ioan 2011. group V. G, subtype nr. 181–184; Medan, Virgil 1979. 170–171. nr. 49. According to the oral statement by Ilona Szenik the Romanians attach to the variants of this melody type other lyrical or medieval ballad texts: A falbaépített feleség [The wife built in the wall], A megölt havasi pásztor (Mioriţa) [The murdered shepherd], A halva talált menyasszony [The bride found dead]. The informant from Buza performing example 12c learnt the Romanian song from her Romanian neighbour.
271 ZOLTÁN GERGELY
2b. Betlehemkisfalujába
Buza, Cluj County, Eke (Simon) Mária 78, recorded by Gergely Zoltán, 2012.
2c. Pui, puişorii miei
Buza, Cluj County, Eke (Simon) Mária 78, recorded by Gergely Zoltán, 2012
2d. Betlehem kis falucskába
Nușeni, Bistrița-Năsăud County, Kiss (Gergely) Rozália 63, recorded by Gergely Zoltán, 2012.
272 SMALL AMBITUS – NEW STYLE CHRISTMAS CAROLS FROM THE TRANSYLVANIAN PLAIN
2e. Betlehem kis falucskába
Feldioara, Cluj County, Sütő Irma 62, recorded by Gergely Zoltán, 2012.
Example 3. The Christmas carol Hej, vígjuhászok, csordások13 [Hey, Merry Shepherds and Herdsmen] – belonging to the small ambitus new style melodies – is very popular; it has been recorded all over the Hungarian language area. In many settlements of Hungary this song was one of the most beloved pieces of the midnight mass, but it was also performed before the mass from Christmas to January 6.14 In spite of the fact that the officially published hymnals had not been popularizing this song in Transylvania, it was present in the 20th century handwritten and published15 cantors’ hymnals, especially in the Catholic regions. From the Transylvanian Plain we have only one recording, collected from the village of Unguraș16. Most probably it was a cantor teacher17 who taught the song to the locals, that is how it was included in the local Christmas repertoire.
13 MNTK I. 637–638. type IV(B)/128.; MNT II. 676–677. 558–559. ex., 1139–1141.; Barna Gábor 2009. 263–264. song nr. 121.; http://mek.oszk.hu/11400/11419/11419.pdf (2012. 09. 19): Molnár József 1903. 452–453. song nr. 20. 14 Volly István 1982. 100−101. (song nr. 91−93.), 288−299. 15 Hungarian Academy of Sciences Folk Music Typological System number: 18.518.0/1. In the folder related to this number, on a file of a variant from Szolnok County we can read the following: „Ez a zének (szöveg és dallam) található: Énekeskönyv a k. Katolikus hívek használatára. Öreg Mezey János és Mezey István szerzeményeiből sajtó alá rendezte és egyházhatósági jóváhagyással kiadja Mezey István, kúnszentmártoni kántor. Budapest, Pesti könyvnyomda R. Társ. Metszésenyomása 1913. Ez ének található a 126. oldalon. 10 verse van.” [This song (text and melody) can be found in: Hymnal for the use of Catholic believers. From the works of János Mezey Sr. And István Mezey it was prepared for editing and it is published with the approval of the church by István Mezey, cantor of Kunszentmárton. Budapest, Pesti Press, 1913.] 16 The author’s collection, 2011. 17 The cantors’ book of Mezey from 1913 was published mainly for cantors, therefore we suppose that it has been spread not only onthe Hungarian plain. Many of its songs have become quite popular, thus these were popularized almost all over the Hungarian language area through different Catholic hymnals or religious pulp literature. See: Barna Gábor 2009. 443–475.
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Besides its role within the Christmas mass, the song was recorded mainly as part of the Christmas carols. If we took into consideration the texts of the collected variants, we can see that most of them are related to the winter holidays. Furthermore, other popular religious texts were attached to the same melody18. E.g. 3 3. Hej, vígjuhászok, csordások
Unguraș, Cluj County, KerekesAndrás (Bandi) 72, recorded by Gergely Zoltán, 2011.
Example 4. The repetitive AABA structured, major hexachord scale melody, built of common chords, which touches the subvocal too in its first and fourth line, shows similarities to the type IV(F)/360 of MNTK I.19 The night song from the Palóc region differs from the one from Unguraș only by the number of syllables and by structure, as in the A lines the number of syllables grows to 13 through rhythm break up; line B repeats itself, resulting an AABBA structure. The end of the lines, the melody and the sequence structure from line B remain the same in both songs.
18Hungarian Academy of Sciences Folk Music Typological System number:: 18.518.0/1. 19 MNTK I. 822. type IV(F)/360.
274 SMALL AMBITUS – NEW STYLE CHRISTMAS CAROLS FROM THE TRANSYLVANIAN PLAIN
The text reveals the harsh conditions of the birth of Jesus Christ in a kind of sentimental style. Regarding the Transylvanian Plain we do not know of other variants than the one from Unguraș, and the informant has probably learnt it from a book.20 According to István Volly this song had several functions: greeting, Christmas carol, but sometimes it was sung also in church.21 E.g. 4 4. Jézus ágyán nincsen paplan [There is no Quilt on Jesus’ Bed]
Unguraș, Cluj County, RétiRozália 60, recorded by Gergely Zoltán, 2011.
Conclusion There are four melodies included in the category called small ambitus – new style. Two of them are still the most popular and well known Christmas carols from the Transylvanian Plain. Regarding the carol called Elindult Mária karácsony estéjén [Mary has Started her Journey on Christmas Night] (example 1) I was able to identify 35 apparitions from the Transylvanian
20 From Călata Region we know of only one variant: http://db.zti.hu/kallos/kallos.asp?VBSdbClickClass_1=VBSdbGoToGridRow&VBSdbIndex _1=1 (2013. 09. 19.) 21 For other text and melody variants see Volly István 1982. nr. 178–179., 195–197., 335.; the text variant from Chibed: Ráduly János 1997. 133.
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Plain. The melody of the song Betlehem kis falucskában [In the Small Village of Bethlehem] (example 2), which is a type known all over Europe, and can be found in the repertoire of both Hungarians and Romanians (15c Pui, puişorii miei), is represented by 36 apparitions in the same region. However, the songs Hej, vígjuhászok, csordások22 [Hey, Merry Shepherds and Herdsmen] (example 3) and Jézus ágyán nincsen paplan [There is no Quilt on Jesus’ Bed] (example 4) were known only on a more limited area, at Unguraș.23
REFERENCES
Barna, Gábor (ed.),Istent dicsőítő egyházi énekkönyv. Mezey - énekek. [A Hymnal to the Glory of the Lord. Mezey Songs] (Devotio Hungarorum, 13.) Néprajzi és Kulturális Antropológiai Tanszék, Szeged, 2009. Bartók, Béla, Melodien der rumänischen Colinde (Weihnachtslieder). 484 Melodien, miteinleitendenAufsatz. [Romanian Colinda Melodies (Christmas Songs). 484 melodies with an introductory study.] Universal Edition, Wien, 1935. Brătulescu, Monica, Colinda românească. [The Romanian Colinda. (Winter-solstice Songs)], Editura Minerva, Bucureşti, 1981. Dobszay, László, A Magyar népének I. Tankönyv. [The Hungarian Folk Song. I. Manual.] (Egyházzenei füzetek, I/15.) MTA-TKI – Liszt Ferenc Zeneművészeti Egyetem (LFZE) Egyházzenei Kutatócsoport – Magyar Egyházzenei Társaság, Budapest, 2006. Dömötör, Tekla, A népszokások költészete. [The Poetry of Folk Customs], Akadémiai Kiadó, Budapest, 1983. Kriza, Ildikó, A legenda ballada. Epikai-lírai alkotások az irodalom és a folklore határán. [The Legend Ballad. Epic-lyric Pieces on the Edge of Literature and Folklore], Akadémiai Kiadó, Budapest, 1982. Medan, Virgil, Cântece epice. [Epic Songs], Editura Centrul Judeţean de Îndrumare a Creaţiei Populare Cluj, Cluj-Napoca, 1979. MNT II., Jelesnapok. [Holidays] In: KERÉNYI György (ed.): Magyar NépzeneTára II. [Archive of Hungarian Folk Music II.]Akadémiai Kiadó, Budapest, 1953.
22 MNTK I. 637–638. type IV(B)/128.; MNT II. 676–677. 558–559. ex., 1139–1141.; Barna Gábor 2009. 263–264. song nr. 121.; http://mek.oszk.hu/11400/11419/11419.pdf (2012. 09. 19): Molnár József 1903. 452–453. song nr. 20. 23 This chapter was published in Hungarian within the volume Mezőségi kántáló énekek in 2016-ban. Gergely Zoltán, Mezőségi kántáló énekek, [Christmas Carols from the Transylvanian Plain] Hagyományok Háza, Budapest, 2016. ISBN 978-963-7363-89-4.
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MNTK I., A Magyar népdaltípusok katalógusa (stílusok szerint rendezve) I. [Catalogue of Hungarian Folk Song Types (by Styles) I.] Coordinated by: Dobszay László – Szendrei Janka. Magyar Tudományos Akadémia Zenetudományi Intézet, Budapest, 1988. Molnár, József (szerk.), Karácsonyi énekek. [Christmas Songs.] In: Orgona- hangok. Legteljesebb és legnagyobb énekeskönyv 910 énekkel. Nyolczadik, javított és bővített kiadás. [Organ Sounds. A Most Complete and Biggest Hymnal with 910 Songs. Eighth revised and extended edition.] Steinbrener Kiadó, Budapest–New York, 1903, 433–479. Péter, Éva Református gyülekezeti énekek az erdélyi írott és szájhagyományos forrásokban. [Reformed Congregational Songs in the Transylvanian Written and Oral Sources.] Kolozsvári Egyetemi Kiadó, Kolozsvár, 2008. Pozsony, Ferenc, Román kolindák és Magyar karácsonyi énekek motívumegyezései. [Identical Motifs of Romanian Colinda and Hungarian Christmas Carols.] In: „Adok nektek aranyvesszőt…”. Dolgozatok erdélyi és moldvai népszokásokról. [Studies on Transylvanian and Moldavian Folk Customs.] Pro-Print Könyvkiadó, Csíkszereda, 2000, 58–83. Ráduly, János, Vetettem gyöngyöt. Népköltészeti tanulmányok. [I Sowed Pearls. Studies of Folk Poetry.], Erdélyi Gondolat Kiadó, Székelyudvarhely, 1997. RMDT I.: Csomasz Tóth Kálmán: A XVI. Század Magyar dallamai. (Régi Magyar Dallamok Tára, I.) [16th Century Hungarian Melodies. (Collection of Old Hungarian Melodies, I.], Akadémiai Kiadó, Budapest, 1958. RMDT II.: Papp, Géza: A XVII. Század énekelt dallamai. (Régi Magyar Dallamok Tára, II.) [Singed Melodies of the 17th Century. (Collection of Old Hungarian Melodies, II.], Akadémiai Kiadó, Budapest, 1970. SZ–D–R I. –– SZ–D–R II.: Szendrei, Janka – Dobszay, László – Rajezcky, Benjamin: A XVI–XVII. századidallamok a népiemlékezetben. I–II. (Régi Magyar DallamokTára) [16th–17th Century Melodies in the Memory of the Folk. (Collection of Old Hungarian Melodies] AkadémiaiKiadó, Budapest, 1979. Szenik, Ilona – Bocșa, Ioan, Colinda în Transilvania. Catalog topologic muzical. I–II. [The Colinda in Transylvania. Typological Musical Catalogue. I–II.] Editura Qal Media, Cluj-Napoca, 2011. Volly, István, Karácsonyi és Mária-énekek. [Christmas and Marian Songs.], Szent István Társulat, Budapest, 1982.
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STUDIA UBB MUSICA, LXIII, 2, 2018 (p. 279 – 284) (RECOMMENDED CITATION) DOI:10.24193/subbmusica.2018.2.18
THE THEME OF THE PRODIGAL SON’S RETURN IN CLASSICAL MUSIC II: SERGEI PROKOFIEV
PETRUȚA-MARIA COROIU1
SUMMARY. The 34th Sunday after the Pentecost is one of the most important in the liturgical cycle of the Christian Orthodox Church, because it is the second Sunday of the Triodion. In connection to this topic, so profound and rich in theological, moral, musical, and human implications, we investigated areas of interest in the history of the modern music in the last century in search for guiding points to approach this topic. In this second part of the study we analize the work signed by Sergei Prokofiev.
Keywords: pray, Triodion, impressionism, religion, faith.
1. Introduction The 34th Sunday after the Pentecost is one of the most important in the liturgical cycle of the Christian Orthodox Church, because it is the second Sunday of the Triodion. “Apart from these elements which belong to the sacramental life of the Holy Church, the Triodion must represent, at a personal level, a period of consecration. It is a time where everyday worries should occupy a secondary place, and our spiritual efforts should intensify in order to prepare for the great holiday of the Resurrection of our Saviour Jesus Christ”2. It is particularly important as its name refers not only to the prodigal son, but also to the prodigal son’s RETURN (with emphasis not on his reckless and proud leaving, but on the contrition and humbleness of admitting his mistake and trying to straighten his life). “The parable of the Prodigal Son comprises the most constructive lesson for youth. We can see the entire picture of flippant youth: shallowness,
1 Transylvania University, Brașov, [email protected] 2 Pintilie, Nicolae, A început perioada Triodului (The Triodion has commenced), https://doxologia.ro/taine-ierurgii-slujbele-bisericii/inceput-perioada-triodului, 22.02.2016.
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PETRUȚA-MARIA COROIU
lack of seriousness, the passion of independence – in a word, everything that characterises most youth. The flippant youngster thus lets himself be deceived by the deluding shine of worldly pleasures and he decided to throw off his shoulders the yoke of obedience and leave his parents’ house.”3
2. Sergei Prokofiev – The Prodigal Son George Balanchine’s work entitled The Prodigal Son op.46, based on the music of Sergei Prokofiev from 1928–1929, is composedin a ballet genre in three acts for the Diaghilev Russian ballet group. The libretto is based on the Prodigal Son parable and belongs to Boris Kochno; the librettist chose to create an amplification of the theme that impresses the public in a very special way. Actually, it was the las ballet supervised by Diaghilev, who was reaching the end of his life. The first performance took place immediately in 1929, in Paris, as an end of the career of the Russian ballet group, with the author conducting. The gesture of the author and the librettist is to be noticed, leading to the creation of a new character, which is not to be found in the biblical framework: the siren. At opus 46 bis, we find again in the creation of Prokofiev the orchestral (symphonic) suite bearing the same name, which has the following sections: 1. Adagio. Allegreto. Presto. Andantino espressivo. Presto, 2. Allegro fastoso, 3. Presto (solo de trios clarinettes), 4. Andante assai and 5. Andante pomposo. Allegro espressivo. The work has also inspired an instrumental suite for piano, found at opus number 52 (six pieces for piano – our examples for this article). Within the first piece from the instrumental suite (1. Intermezzo), a short sequence in Andantino (piano dolce) introduces the first section, Presto, that preserves the acid rhythmicity of Prokofiev’s discourse. It supposes a sound intervention on each of its eighths, with a staccato attack, in forte and with accents on each sound, which adds a great mobility within the multi- octave framework of the unfolding music (with frequent and sudden passages from higher register to middle and lower);
3 Maximovici, Sf. Ioan, Cuvinte pentru viața sufletului, predici și îndrumări duhovnicești (Words for soul life, preaches and spiritual guidance), trad. Elena Dulgheru, Ed. Sophia, București, 2016, p. 113-115.
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E.g. 1
The different accents trigger, at the level of the ternary bar, the dislocation of ordinary ternary pulsation and the configuration of some groups that transcend the original metric dimension. The Meno mosso (piano espressivo) section offers to the listener a sample of the lyricism typical for Prokofiev, supported by accompanying ascending formulas in the lower register and by a poly-melodic (stratified) discourse in the higher sound range. The two types of expressive sections (Meno mosso espressivo and Presto) alternate, thus illustrating the fluctuation of the main hero between the dominating rebel (leaving home and denying paternity) and the family-related prevalence. At the moments Moderato and Andante (piano dolce, irresoluto), we find again lyrical mixtures of the highest intensity, some even with a neoclassical odour. The second work of the suite, Rondo is dedicated to Arthur Rubinstein and articulates a rhythmical-melodic type of discourse of the purest tenderness, supportedby a quasi-consonant harmony, so that from the moment Un poco piu sostenuto onwards, we can notice a complex bimodal sound level, made up of harmonic intervals that succeed one another in the middle and higher registers, forming a dense and expressive melodic layer. E.g. 2
Music also has impressionistic tendencies, besides the neo- classical ones, but the lower and middle registers are privileged (a stylistic element typical for Prokofiev). The discourse is very mobile, full of changes of the modal framework state, tempo and attack.
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The third part of the cycle is dedicated to another great pianist (like the other parts) and is entitled Study. The musical discourse is motoric, fluent and marked by virtuosity, polymodal accents and an often ludic profile.
E.g. 3
E.g. 4
Part 4, entitled Scherzino is dedicated to Orlov, and suggests a more impressionistic atmosphere, closer to consonance, based on a barcarole-like accompaniment. The fifth part, Andante is the most meditative of all, with the melody oscillating between the medium and the low register. The indications dolce, espressivo e cantando refer to the vocal part; the vocality is evident in a type of music which seems derived from post-Romanticism. The ambitus of the piano composition shows orchestral musical thinking, gaining in volume and resonance. The last part is dedicated to V. Horowitz and has the name and nature of a Scherzo – so specific for Prokofiev. The metro-rhythmic dominant is characteristic for this Allegro risoluto, both in the articulation of the upper level, and in the accompaniment.
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E.g. 5
Within the piano suite there are no expressive, emotional correspondences with such rich themes and resonance for the entire human race. The suites were subsequently extracted from the scenic composition. Many musical ideas were incorporated in the fourth part of the author’s symphony, which is recorded under the successive opus (47, signed in 1930). If the piano suite has six components, the orchestral one has only five, exclusively with tempo indications: Adagio, extracted from "The Departure" (No. 1) and "The Prodigal Son and the Siren" (No. 5), Allegro fastoso, taking over elements from "Meeting Friends" (No. 2), and "Drunkenness" (No. 6), Presto, with musical ideas inspired from "The Despoiling" (No. 7), suggesting that the son succumbed to the temptations of the world. The next part is Andante assai, which refers to coming to one’s senses: "Awakening and Remorse" (No. 8) and "The Return" (No. 10), and in the end Andante pomposo (inspired by "Men's Dance" – no. 4, and "Meeting Friends" – no. 2), as a symbol of the return and of finding oneself.
3. Conclusion One of the basic elements of Prokofiev’s musical discourse is the polymodal articulation, which gives his music complexity and enhances its expressivity; investigating the bi- and poly-modal universe, Professor Gheorghe Duțică believes that it “displays the principle of correlation in the succession and/or simultaneity of opposed, antinomic sonorous events, entailing different types of sonorous syntax”4 (our translation). ”Wouldn’t the impulses be similar that even today make many people leave, if not their parents’ house, then the house of the Father in Heavens, so that they should not be subjected to the obedience to the
4 Duțică, Gheorghe, Universul gândirii polimodale [The universe of polymodal thinking], Ed.Juminea, Iași, 2014, p. 210.
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Church anymore? We cannot serve God without refusing to serve the world. (...) In other words, day by day, he indulges more and more in the world, and he finally leaves to a far away country. Thus, flippant youth exhaust their wonderful powers of body and soul very quickly and destroy everything they did well before for the time of eternity. In the meanwhile, a great famine occurs in that country, and innermost ravaging and discontent occur”5.
REFERENCES
Duțică, Gheorghe, Universul gândirii polimodale (The universe of polymodal thinking), Ed.Juminea, Iași, 2014, p. 210. Maximovici, St. Ioan, Cuvinte pentru viața sufletului, predici și îndrumări duhovnicești (Words for soul life, preaches and spiritual guidance), trad. Elena Dulgheru, Ed. Sophia, București, 2016, p. 113-115. Pintilie, Nicolae, A început perioada Triodului (The Triodion has commenced), https://doxologia.ro/taine-ierurgii-slujbele-bisericii/inceput-perioada-triodului, 22 February 2016.
5 Maximovici, Sf. Ioan, Cuvinte pentru viața sufletului, predici și îndrumări duhovnicești (Words for soul life, preaches and spiritual guidance), trad. Elena Dulgheru, Ed. Sophia, București, 2016, p. 113-115.
284 STUDIA UBB MUSICA, LXIII, 2, 2018 (p. 285 – 295) (RECOMMENDED CITATION) DOI:10.24193/subbmusica.2018.2.19
FOLK SONG ADAPTATIONS FOR MEN’S CHOIR BY JÁNOS SEPRŐDI
ÉVA PÉTER1
SUMMARY. Music historian and folklorist János Seprődi deceased 95 years ago. He played a significant part in the Transylvanian folk song collecting endeavours. A predecessor to Kodály and Bartók he published some of his folk song collections from the region of Marosszék already in 1901. In the paper hereby I intend to write about the folk songs he collected and the 57 pieces for men’s choir based on these collections.
Keywords: Folk song adaptations, Szekler folk songs, folk ballads, recruited songs, mockery songs, exile songs, old style pentatonic tunes, heptatonic tunes, new style tunes.
He was born at Chibed, in the county of Mureș on August 15th 1874. After he graduated from primary school his parents did not intend to give him further education. But his teacher, folk tale collector János Ősz suggested they did. Thus in 1885 Seprődi became a student at the Reformed Secondary School of Odorheiu Secuiesc. Here he participated at all musical activities: he sang in the school choir, he learnt how to play the violin and played in the school band. In the last two years of his studies the teachers of the school entrusted him with teaching hymnology and music theory. Between 1894-1898 he studied Latin and Hungarian language and literature at the humanities faculty of the University of Cluj-Napoca, then he became the Hungarian and Latin teacher of the Reformed Secondary School of Cluj-Napoca and at the same time he taught music and singing. He also tried writing. Some of his works are: A testvérek (Brothers) (1895), a Hungarian folk play in three acts and A híres jövendőmondó (The Famous Fortune Teller) (1901), a folk comedy in five acts.2 In 1907 he was
1 PhD Docent, Babeș-Bolyai University, Faculty of Reformed Theology, Musical Pedagogy Department, Ro-400535, Cluj-Napoca, Horea street 7, email: [email protected] 2 A variant of the title of the folk comedy: A két góbé (The Two Szeklers).
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elected a member of the Music Society of Cluj-Napoca. He also played music: he played second violin and later tenor violin in the chamber music ensemble. As a composer he created several significant musical works: an opera in three acts based on one of Jókai’s novellas entitled Petki Farkas leányai (The Daughters of Farkas Petki) (1901) and the accompaniment of Kotsonya Mihály házassága – Omnia vincit amor (The Marriage of Mihály Kotsonya - Omnia vincit amor) and of Bakhusz (Bacchus) (1912). Relying on his music teaching experience of several years he created a plan for music teaching for Reformed secondary schools. He urged the creation of a unanimous music curriculum containing music reading and writing practice in the lower classes and harmony, musical form studies, musical history, instrument studies and Hungarian musical history in the upper classes. He became the official study book critique for the Ministry of Public Education. In his writings he stressed the role of folk songs in musical studies in school.3 He is commissioned to edit a series of study books. The study books he wrote presented pieces of classical music along with folk songs. Music reading and writing was practiced with exercises on one or two voices. On concerts organized to musically educate the youth he presented the evolution of Hungarian music.4 As the music teacher of the Reformed Secondary School of Cluj-Napoca he pressed for the renewal of the musical material of the Reformed Church. He criticized distortions in the tunes that have been persisting for centuries, the incorrect measure divisions, the elimination of upbeat introductions, the lack of tempo signs, the slights in melismas, the change of ecclesiastical, i.e. modal tonality to major and minor keys. Due to his hard work in editing the hymn book, in 1908 the Reformed Church of Transylvania introduced a new hymn book. He studied issues of the Hungarian music history at a scientific level. In 1909 he published two studies about the Codex Caioni,5 containing
3 “Every person (child or adult) can sense the general human values only through his or her own special nationality and he or she can get to understand the general human principles only after he or she understands his or her particular situation, for this is the natural way of evolution...” A népiskolai énektanítás főbb kérdései (Main Issues of Music Teaching in Public Elementary Schools), Néptanítók lapja, Budapest, 1909. 4 The choirs singing the musical material of the presentations were lead by Ilona Csipkés and Ferenc Zsigmond; instrumental pieces for orchestra were played by the Army Band of Cluj-Napoca under the conductorship of Samu Borsay; chamber music pieces were played by the students. 5 The two studies are entitled: A Kájoni-kódex dallamai (Tunes of the Codex Caioni). Adalékok a magyar zene történetéhez a XVII. századból (Additions to the Hungarian Musical History from the 17th Century). Akadémiai Értesítő, Budapest, XX., 1909, 61-70; A Kájoni-codex irodalom- s zenetörténeti adalékai, In:Irodalomtörténeti Közlemények, XIX, Budapest, 1909.
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the description of the collection, the history of its creation, an explanation for the music writing in the codex and he transposed the tunes in the codex to the five line music system. As a result of this work he was later quoted as a scientific source. He published a treatise on the Batthány Codex.6 In his study entitled Feladatok a magyar zene körül (Tasks Related to Hungarian Music)7 he criticised the lack of scientific musical magazines and the lack of composing. He wrote criticisms of pieces of musical specialized literature: among many others he wrote criticism of the folk song collection of István Bartalus, of the works of Bertalan Fabó,8 János Drumár9 and Kornél Ábrányi10. He flagelated the retrograde state of Hungarian musical science, but at the same time he pointed out also the new direction in which studies should be conducted. He stressed Bartók’s role in creating the new Hungarian artistic music.11
He attached tunes of exemplification and photocopies to the study (pp. 129-146, 282-301, 385-424). Benkő evaluates the work thus: “He was the first person to decipher the Codex Caioini and he did it in a way that is scientifically consistent up to this day. And he also published most of the materials in the Codex.” Benkő András, Seprődi János, a zenepedagógus (János Seprődi, the Music Educator), In: Korunk, 1972/5, 689. 6 A Batthyány-kódex jelentősége (The Importance of the Codex Batthány) – study presented at the ambulatory meeting of Alba Iulia of the Transylvanian Museum Society and published in the memorial edited by Pál Erdélyi, Kiadó: EME, Kolozsvár, 1913, 132-140. 7 He wrote his study entitled Emlékirat a magyar zene ügyében (Memorir In the Case of Hungarian Music) commissioned by the board of directors of the Musical Conservatory of Cluj-Napoca. The study was published by the Budapesti Szemle in May 1906 (pp. 214-263) under the title Feladatok a magyar zene körül (Tasks Related to Hungarian Music). The part that raised the most controversy was when he blamed Ferenc Liszt’s activities for the fact that the non-Hungarian speaking teachers of the Musical Academy educated the composers and musicians of the future generations in a foreign spirit. 8 The criticism of the book entitled A magyar népdal zenei fejlődése (The Musical Evolution of the Hungarian Folk Songs) In: Erdélyi Múzeum, XXV., 1908, 293-327. 9 The criticism of the book entitled Zenetörténet zeneiskolák, magántanulás s a művelt közönség használatára (For the Use of the Musical History, Music Schools, Private Music Study and the Educated Audience) In: Erdélyi Múzeum, XXVII., 1910, 396-405. 10 The criticism of the book entitled A magyar zene a XIX. Században (Hungarian Music in the 19th Century) In: Erdélyi Múzeum, XVIII., 1901, 106-108. 11 “In this respect it is indisputable that Béla Bartók, the most genial Hungarian composer is on the right track using the folk song as the point of origin and shaping the primitive folk music motifs into such an original and enchanting artistic form that can stand up to the most sophisticated concert music tastes, yet it manages to maintain its original Hungarian folk style.” A magyar klasszikus zene problémája (The Problem with the Hungarian Classical Music), In: Napkelet, II, 1921, 830.
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His activity as folk music researcher He started scientific research on folk music in 1901.12 He considered that the most urgent task was folk music collection with scientific purpose and methodology. He started to collect folk music first in his own home village, Chibed. Then he presented these during the scientific sessions of the Transylvanian Museum Society as a member of the Humanities, Language and Historical Science Departments. He publishes the 72 tunes he wrote down in the Ethnographia magazine under the title Marosszéki dalgyűjtemény (Folk Song Collection from Marosszék) in eight parts.13 Besides the scientifically reliable data he also published many sound theoretical and methodological explanations and excellent observations. He observed that the sources do not conform to the note pitches of the instruments tuned in the equal temperament system, that lyrics tend to produce more variants than tune and that with singing dialect tends to be less proeminent. He regreted that folk ballads gradually were fading out of folk tradition while recruite songs and love songs thrived.14 In his writing entitled Emlékirat a magyar zene ügyében he emphasized the importance of research conducted in folk music: “Every measure wrote down from the mouth of the people will clarify the air and disperse darkness... I.e. it will prepare the scene for the future of Hungarian art.”15 As a beginner collector he was against using the phonograph. He considered that the sources felt uncomfortable with the unusual device. Yet he admitted it was a useful tool to record tunes accompanied with musical instruments. Initially he used the method of so called reminiscence based collection: he wrote down with score the tunes of the folk songs he heard as a child and youth. He noted thoroughly the collection data of the new songs he heard and wrote on score. He first learned to sing the tunes, then at home he wrote them down on a score using his violin. He was very
12 During the 19th century we know of many initiatives to discover folk music. A few of the most important contributors were Ádám Pálóczi Horváth, Sámuel Almási, Mihály Füredi, Gábor Mátray, István Bartalus, Áron Kiss, Béla Vikár. In some of the handwritten collections and publications folk songs have piano or guitar accompaniment. Since there was no clear definition of what a folk song was, folklorized artisitic songs and foreign artistic songs were also included in the collections. The tunes were also frequently wrote down with errors or scanty. 13 This work could be considered the predecessor of the later popular village monographies. 14 See: The study of István Almási entitled A népzenekutató (The Folk Music Researcher), In: Seprődi János válogatott zenei írásai és népzenei gyűjtése (Various Musical Writings and Folk Song Collections of János Seprődi), ed. Almási István, Benkő András, Lakatos István, Kriterion Könyvkiadó, Bukarest, 1974, 66. 15 pp. 44-45.
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precise in assigning tempo, he even used a metronome. He classified the tunes according to the contents of the lyrics dividing them into pieces pertaining to the epic, lyric and drama genres. He considered it very important that Hungarians familiarize themselves with the songs of their kin folks.16 In his opinion this was the way one could identify the specific and particular traits in a song. As a folk music researcher Seprődi mobilized his students as well offering a yearly grant for collection activities.17 He studied the life of professional folk singers of Marosszék. He considered studying the music of the neighbouring people and the related people in the East and ideintifying interferences an urgent matter. He collected folk songs from the Ukranians of Subcarpathia commissioned by Sztripszky Hiador.18 During his 10 years of collecting he brought forth more than three hundred folk songs with lyrics and with accompaniment from 12 villages. He classified them according to genre and in 1911 he created a handwritten book out of them entitled A magyar nép dalai és dallamai (Songs and Tunes of the Hungarian People). In October the same year dr. Sebestyén Gyula, the president of the Hungarian Ethnographic Society announced Seprődi that besides Bartók’s and Kodály’s collections he intended to publish Seprődi’s collection as well. But the plan failed. Commissioned by the Hungarian Society for Community Culture of Transylvania he created adaptations from his own folk music collection for men’s choir. The volume was entitled: Eredeti székely dalok (Original Szekler Folk Song). The quick reply Seprődi gave to the commissioning from the early 1900s is proven by the foreword of 1903 to the adaptations, which remained a manuscript. In this foreword he emphasized in parallel with Bartók’s and Kodály’s principles the musical value of the folk songs and their positive effect
16 “They did not pay much attention to these, although they are the ones who let us know which song is original and and which is a borrowing.” A hazai kis oroszok között (Among the Ukranians of Subcarpathia), Erdélyi Lapok, I., 1908, 12. 17 In the newspaper of the secondary school he taught at the following announcement was placed: “Anyone who collects the folk songs of a village, if possible, completely will be rewarded 30 Hungarian crowns. It is preferable that the collection would be organized according to genres and writing down the tunes of the folk songs also constitutes an advantage.” The three students who excelled at collecting were: János Bogdán who collected at Magyargyerőmonostor, Lajos Kocsis at Felsőtők and Seprődi’s own son, János who collected recruite songs from his fellow students who served as soldiers. Lajos Jékely who was in fact the poet Lajos Áprily also was mentioned as productive collector. 18 He recorded the folk songs he collected. Among them we find colomeikas (a Russian- Ruthenian dance), volosikas (a Romanian dance), sidovskis (Jewish song) and many wedding songs. Ukranians from Subcarpathia were also called Ruthenians or little Russians.
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on artistic music: “Today these songs are alive only among the people and on the violin of the village musician, but I trust very much that in a short time they will be appreciated also by larger audiences, for they convey more powerful, deeper and more varied feelings than the now popular Dankó songs.”19 The volume was finally published in 1914 at Cluj-Napoca in two thousand copies. His intention by it: to renew artistic music.
Musical Analysis of the Folk Song Adaptations Seprődi chose the tunes intended for adaptation from among his collections in Szeklerland. These were collected at Chibed, Odorheiu Secuiesc, Sarateni, Viile Dejului, Sambatesti and Pauleni. This material is quite varied according to genre: love songs (1, 11, 15, 19, 21, 22, 23, 46, 49, 53.), folk ballads (32, 43, 48.), recruite songs (3, 16, 17, 26, 33, 36, 50.), mockery songs, waggery songs and songs of ridicule (5, 30.), songs of the outlaw, exile songs and prisoner’s songs (12), moan songs (24), pub songs (29) and artistic songs featuring folk songs (2, 7, 10, 13, 14, 18, 25, 27, 28, 31, 34, 35, 38, 41, 42, 44, 45, 47, 51, 55, 57.) . As far as style is concerned, the adapted material comprises of old style pentatonic tunes (3, 11, 12, 17, 21, 23, 29, 30, 32, 43, 48, 49.), heptatonic tunes (1, 5, 16, 24, 33, 46, 50), new style tunes (15, 22, 26, 36, 53.), artistic songs and foreign tunes (19). By adapting these to men’s choir Seprődi intended to encourage their spread to the large public. The greatest part of the adaptations have major or minor keys. The 32 adaptations in a minor key are matched by only 18 ones in a major key. He preferred D minor, G minor, C minor and F minor. Composing the adaptations he realized he could deviate from the classical harmony rules,20 he could ignore the primary usage of the system of majors and minors. Therefore some of the compositions are in keys of the folklore: in Doric mode is the adaptation of the pentatonic ballad beginning Rózsa Sándor Bársony lovát nyergeli (Sándor Rózsa Sadles His Smooth Haired Horse), the adaptation of the pentatonic song of ridicule beginning Jaj Istenem, te tudod (Woe, My Lord, You Only Know), the adaptation of the artistic song featuring folk songs entitled Ha meguntad rózsám (Honey If You Will No Longer), the adaptation of the
19 Előszó az Eredeti székely dalok című kötethez (Foreword to the Volume Entitled Original Szekler Folk Songs), 1903, manuscript. 20 „I did not refrain even from forbidden combinations, since it appeared to me that the asperity of these songs was not so much asperity, rather a refreshing unusual particularity and forcefulness.” Előszó az „Eredeti székely dalok” című kötethez, 1903, 4.
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pentatonic love song beginning Elment az én uram (My Hubby Has Gone Away). The adaptation of the pentatonic love song beginning Sárga virág, ha leszakasztanálak (Yellow Flower If I Would Pick You) is in Doric mode based on extended fourths and the adaptation of the pentatonic pub song beginning Iszom a bort (Here I Am Savouring My Wine) and the adaptation of the heptatonic moan song beginning Fiátfalvi halastóba (In the Fish Pond of Fiátfalva) is in Frigian mode. We find a peculiar choice of key in the case of the folk ballad beginning Jöjjön haza édesanyám (Come Home Mother). It feels as if it were written in both major and minor. The initial motif of the tune, appearing in rubato style is in D minor. Which reflects keenly the content of this part: the girl asks her mother to come to her father who is ill. Yet the closing of this line is already in F major. The reply of the mother that she will rather dance a little longer and only then she will return home is reflected by a modulation from D minor to C major and a vivid tempo. As far as tempo is concerned Seprődi prefers temperate or slow motion: there are 23 Moderato adaptations, 4 Lento, 6 Adagio and only 11 Vivace. In some cases he also notes the character of the tempo: Lento-Rubato or Moderato-Rubato. He uses all the steps of the dynamic scale according to the character of the music and the content of the lyrics. As far as meter is concerned he mostly uses duple meter: 2/4 in 27 pieces, 4/8 in 23 pieces, while in 7 pieces he combines duple meter variants (2/4, 2/8, 4/8) or duple and triple meter variants (3/8-4/8; 2/4-3/4). He created mostly simple, homophonic structures, maintaining the original form of the tune. In the second and third stage of the pieces he uses variation as a compositional tool. At the beginning of some pieces we find a unisono and at the end an organ like maintained tune.
E.g. 1
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He rarely uses immitation, but even then he will not let it flow though the tune consequently, but rather turns it into chordic music. E.g. 2
The various voices often sing the tune one third apart; rarely does he use longer counter-movements between the voices as well. But each compositional choice is meant to make each voice as melodious as possible. E.g. 3
E.g. 4
In harmony he usually uses pitched tones. In some cases we find mediants, inversions, passing notes and shifts. In the case of waggery song beginning Amint én az úton járok (As I Pass Along the Road) the bass voice is the one immitating the sound of the folk instrument, the pipe.
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E.g. 5
Out of the three ballads he adapted in the case of two he deviates from the four voice structure. The main tune of the ballad is sung by a soloist, while the choir itself accompanies the soloist in 4 voices. In the case of ballad Szabó Vilma the accompanying voices sing mimicking an instrumental accompaniment in staccato style, while in the case of ballad Molnár Anna the choir merely murmurs singing only an M sound.
E.g. 6
E.g. 7
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Why the simplicity? As he put it: „...I wanted to avoid anything that would alter the original, specific traits of these simple folk songs and the atmosphere their simple originality created.”21 His aim was not to compose not so much adaptations of these songs, but rather transcriptions for simple choirs. As a conclusion one could say that he did a meritorious work in any field he contributed to: unveiling the old musical relics of the Hungarians or researching and promoting the archaic tunes of the Reformed hymns or the collection and artistic adaptation of the Szekler folk songs or studying the historic layers of the Hungarin folk songs. Let me finally quote musical historian András Benkő of Cluj-Napoca on his work: „...He was one of the pioneers of the modern ethnomusicology brought to completion by Bartók and Kodály.”22 His work and oeuvre is worth knowing and appreciating.
Translated from Hungarian by Danel Zsuzsa
REFERENCES
***, Eredeti székely dalok (Original Szekler Folk Songs), Collected and adapted to men’s choir by János Seprődi, Kiadja az Erdélyi Irodalmi Társaság, Kolozsvár, 1914. ***, In memoriam. The Almanach of School Year 1922-23 of the Reformed Secondary School of Cluj-Napoca, Kolozsvár. Almási, István, A népzenekutató Seprődi János (János Seprődi, the Folk Music Researcher). In: István Almási: A népzene jegyében. Válogatott írások. Kolozsvár, 2009. Benkő, András, Mit jelent nekünk Seprődi János munkássága? (Why is János Seprődi’s Work Important to Us?) Művelődés 1958/3. Benkő, András, Seprődi János, a zenepedagógus (János Seprődi, the Music Educator). Korunk, 1972/5; Seprődi, János, A hazai kis oroszok között (Among the Ukranians of Subcarpathia), Erdélyi Lapok, I., 1908. Seprődi, János, A középiskolai énektanítás (Music Teaching in Secondary School), Magyar Paedagógia, Budapest, 1909. Seprődi, János, A magyar klasszikus zene problémája (The Problem with the Hungarian Classical Music), Napkelet, II, 1921. Seprődi, János, A népiskolai énektanítás főbb kérdései (Main Issues of Music Teaching in Public Elementary Schools), Néptanítók lapja, Budapest, 1909.
21 See: Előszó, In: Eredeti székely dalok, Gyűjtötte és férfikarra alkalmazta Seprődi János, Kiadja az Erdélyi Irodalmi Társaság, Kolozsvár, 1914, 4. 22 Seprődi János válogatott zenei írásai és népzenei gyűjtése (Various Musical Writings and Folk Song Collections of János Seprődi), ed. Almási István, Benkő András, Lakatos István, Kriterion Könyvkiadó, Bukarest, 1974, 55.
294 FOLK SONG ADAPTATIONS FOR MEN’S CHOIR BY JÁNOS SEPRŐDI
Seprődi, János, Feladatok a magyar zene körül (Tasks Related to Hungarian Music), Budapesti Szemle, 1906 május. Seprődi János válogatott zenei írásai és népzenei gyűjtése (Various Musical Writings and Folk Song Collections of János Seprődi), ed. Almási István, Benkő András, Lakatos István, Kriterion Könyvkiadó, Bukarest, 1974. Tóth, Sándor, Seprődi és Verzsenyi - kritikusok egymásról (Seprődi and Verzsenyi - Critiques Inspiring One Another), Kolozsvári Tükör, VIII., 1920.
A list of the songs:
1. A bögözi nagy híd alatt 30. Jaj Istenem, te tudod 2. A gergelyfi utca 31. Jancsi! Jancsi! 3. A kibédi bíró levelet kapott 32. Jöjjön haza édes anyám 4. A merre én járok 33. Kapitány úr, arra kérem 5. Amint én az úton járok 34. Kádár Ferkó 6. Bánom, bánom 35. Kis kertemben legel 7. Besorozott a német katonának 36. Kis-szebeni, nagy-szebeni 8. Bukarestből jön a posta 37. Magyarország gyászba’ van 9. Bús életem 38. Már minálunk babám 10. Császár körte 39. Márványkőből van a 11. Elment az én uram 40. Ments meg Isten 12. Elveszett a lovam 41. Miklós-huszár nem eszik 13. Engem hívnak Fábián Pistának 42. Mikor mentem Pestre 14. Este van már 43. Molnár Anna 15. Ez a kis lány rezet lopott 44. Nincsen pénzem 16. Édes anyám kiállott a kapuba 45. Rászállott a fülemile 17. Édes anyám, hol vagyon az édes té 46. Repülj madár, repülj 18. Édes anyám, selyem a 47. Rózsa Sándor az én nevem zsebkendőm 48. Rózsa Sándor Bársony lovát 19. Édes anyám, sokat intett nyergeli 20. Én a tehént kihajtottam 49. Sárga virág, ha leszakasztanálak 21. Én elmegyek szép szeretőt... 50. Sárgára van a kaszárnya befestve 22. Érik a ropogós cseresznye 51. Sebesen folyik a... 23. Fejér fuszujkavirág 52. Szabó Vilma 24. Fiátfalvi halastóba 53. Szánt az ökör 25. Ha meguntad rózsám 54. Töltik az erdei utat 26. Hej, azért, a mért... 55. Ucczu bizony 27. Hej, de szépen esik az eső 56. Vásárhelyi csárdába 28. Hervad az a rózsa 57. Vásárhelyi nagy kaszárnya 29. Iszom a bort
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STUDIA UBB MUSICA, LXIII, 2, 2018 (p. 297 – 309) (RECOMMENDED CITATION) DOI:10.24193/subbmusica.2018.2.20
HISTORY OF A FORGOTTEN PASSACAGLIA: THE SYMPHONY NO.3 “OVID” FINALE BY SIGISMUND TODUŢĂ
ECATERINA BANCIU1
Motto:
Worried are thou when from the Euxine news arrives? Does thy hand tremble opening the letter? …………………………………………… Oh! But as many as the blooms in beds and seashells on the shores, Or just as drowsy poppies fill the fields, As countless as the beasts that roam the woods and fish that swim the deep, As many as the birds that cross the skies, My woes are drowning me. How can I count them miseries, When countless are the sea waves?
Ovid, Tristia, book IV
SUMMARY. From the perspective of a new century and millennium, preoccupied with the new directions in the stylistic evolution of language, be it musical or otherwise, a retrospective look over the works of an overwhelming personality of Cluj-Napoca musical life such as Sigismund Toduţă creates a bridge towards a past which yet has mysteries to be solved.2 Hundreds of pages dedicated to Sigismund Toduţă were written3 -
1 Univ.Prof. PhD at the “Gheorghe Dima” Music Academy, Cluj-Napoca, Romania, Email: [email protected] 2 The present paper was presented on May 17, 2013, during the first edition of the “Sigismund Toduță” International Festival with the theme “Stylistic directions in contemporary musical writing”, May 13-18, 2013. 3 A graduate of the Cluj music school, Sigismund Toduţă (May 17, 1908 – July 3, 1991) composer, musicologist and eminent professor carried on the legacy of his predecessors, Gheorghe Dima, Augustin Bena, Mihail Andreescu-Skeletty, Marţian Negrea, George Simonis, his musical education being a synthesis of the composition schools in Romania, Berlin, Paris and Vienna. He perfected his contrapuntal compositional style during his doctoral studies at the "Pontificio Istituto di Musica Sacra" in Rome, with a thesis focused on Renaissance polyphony (1936-1938), as well as during the composition classes with Ildebrando Pizzetti, a leading authority in Gregorian chant and medieval polyphonic writing. Professor Pizzetti’s personality left its mark on Toduţă’s creative writing as well as on his later stylistic orientation: the cultivation of a national music, while abandoning the Romantic or Verist influences.
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musicologist, founder of cultural institutions as well as founder of the Cluj composition school – yet every time their authors would state that they had much to learn from the Maestro while finding answers to their own dilemmas. Unsolved mysteries regarding the life and works of Sigismund Toduţă remain, one of them being the subject of the present lecture: what was the reason for relinquishing the final passacaglia in Symphony no. 3, dedicated to the equally mysterious Latin poet Ovid, whom he greatly admired. At the Sigismund Toduţă anniversary symposium in 2004, the author of the present text presented an aesthetic analysis of the symphony, accompanied by a historical recording. The analysis of the third and last part, the Passacaglia4, was difficult because the original score was missing, the author only working with the piano reduction, in a form which did not match any of the two interpretations (Chisadji and Elenescu). The score, printed in 1975, contains additional passages, which do not appear in the interpretations, showing the composer’s constant strive for an ideal version. In July 2009, composer Dan Voiculescu, one of Toduţă’s disciples, managed to obtain the manuscript score from the Library of the Composers’ Union in Bucharest. In 2013 the manuscript score of the final part of the Symphony was offered to us by the secretary of the “Sigismund Toduță” Foundation and we renewed the research. There are quite important differences between the manuscript and the two interpretations with the composer’s participation; therefore, putting together one final version of the score could be a challenge for the present composition class. For a musicologist, diving into the written text, deciphering and revealing its message remain essential. The most “recent” complete interpretation belongs to the Symphonic Orchestra of the RTR conducted by Emanoil Elenescu and dating back to October 16, 1981. After two decades of absence from the concert programs (27 years), conductor Romeo Rîmbu conducted Symphony no. 3 on May 15, 2008 with the Philharmonic Orchestra in Sibiu, without a finale however, as the score was considered destroyed. In 1975 only the first two parts of the symphony were printed (!), a unique situation, as Toduţă has never composed a symphonic work in two parts. The critics’ appreciation, as well as the acclaim won by the performance of the Symphony prove the author’s compositional mastery and entitle him to new rehabilitation. Hopefully, it will not take a millennium, as in the case of the Symphony’s protagonist.
Keywords: Toduță, Ovid, Effigy-themed symphony, passacaglia
4 Part which does not appear in the score printed by Editura Muzicală, Bucharest, 1975 (!).
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1. The Symphonic works of Sigismund Toduţă
Sigismund Toduţă’s symphonic style follows in the natural footsteps of Enescu’s tradition, with the harmonic and polyphonic orchestral amplification of an original theme of archaic modal origin. The themes of his symphonies, easy to sing, have allowed for the use of the counterpoint technique, while the composer frequently uses the forms of the Baroque: passacaglia, ricercar, fugue, canon, and prelude.5 Toduță’s symphonic writing puts on various forms along five decades, the first five of the seven orchestral works being Post- romantic in character - Eglogue for Orchestra (1933), followed by the four symphonies: The 1st Symphony in D Major (1953-1954), The 2nd Symphony with organ in d minor, in memoriam George Enescu (1956), The 3rd Sym- phony “Ovid” (1957) and The 5th Sym- phony (1962-1975) – while the last two are cameral - Simfonietta “in antico stile” for orchestra (1977) and The B-A-C-H Symphony for organ (1984). The sketch of The 4th Symphony, for string orchestra and choir (1959-1961), will remain unfinished. During the last decade, the composer preferred to continue the series of concertante pieces: Concerto no. 4 for string orchestra, with organ (1979), Concerto for flute and string orchestra (1983), Concerto for oboe and string orchestra (1989), Concerto no. 2 for piano and orchestra (1986) and 4 lieder for soprano and orchestra on verses by W. Shakespeare, Fr. V. Schober, Ch. Baudelaire and R.M. Rilke (1988), the latter bearing a possible resemblace to 4 Letzte Lieder by Richard Strauss, the art songs being the last works composed with symphonic orchestral writing.
5 Zeno Vancea, Sigismund Toduţă, Muzica journal, 1977, no. 4.
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2. The birth of Symphony no.3 “Ovid” (completed on May 7, 1957) The symphony was originally conceived as a string quartet. After having completed the 2nd part, Lento, (composed first on November 4-20, 1956), the composer noted: “the idea of a quartet is relinquished and the sketch of a Symphony (the 3rd) appears”. The first part was composed December 1, 1956 through January 7, 1957, while the third one was begun on January 18, 1957. The events connected to the symphony succeed as follows: - the work was finished on May 7, 1957, retouched on May 12; - the parts were copied on August 17, 1957; - an article signed by Gheorghe Sbârcea appeared in 1957 in the journal Făclia; - on August 31, that same year, the article “Ovidiu bimilenar” (“Bi-Millennial Ovid”), by N. Lascu, was published in Tribuna (year I, no. 30); - on September 30 – a literary circle took place at the Cluj branch of the Composers’ Union; - September 28-29 – the first public performance (Cluj State Philhar- monic Orchestra, conductor Anatol Chisadji); - September 30 – the composer presented the work at the Cluj Radio station (fragments were broadcasted); January 24-25, 1959 – first performance in Bucharest (conductor Mircea Basarab), where the composer noted “the piece has fallen; less than mediocre performance”; - August 1959 – the work was revised again, “in the form of a sym- phonic poem”, for the competition at … (illegible); - January 30-31, 1960 – the Cluj Philharmonic Orchestra conducted by Anatol Chisadji – Toduță noted: “very beautiful performance”.
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3. On Ovid, the hero invoked Publius Ovidius Naso (43 B.C. - 17 A.D.), was a Roman poet from the time of Augustus, a time named “the golden age of Latin poetry”). Born in an equestrian family Ovid studied rhetoric with famous teachers, in Rome and Athens in order to become a magistrate, but he abandoned it to pursue poetry. He was accepted and even adored at the court of Augustus. However, at his orders, he was exiled to Tomis, in 8 A.D., due to reasons which remained unclear. He wrote elegies, lyrical and erotic poetry, while also criticizing morals (Amores, Ars Amatoria) and proved his erudition and poetic genius by treating historical and mythological themes (Heroides, Metamorphoses Libri and Fasti). Tristia and Epistulae ex Ponto were written while in exile, during lonely years, and contain letters for his wife, friends and the emperor. These final volumes represent the connection between the poet and our culture. Ovid was the first cultured poet who wrote about the history of ancient Scythians, the inhabitants of today’s Dobrogea. In Metamorphoses, a work “as great as the Iliad”6, he builds an “ample epic poem, a mythological history of the world’s genesis, of the metamorphosis of things and beings”.7 There are forms which manifest like metamorphosis. The passacaglia or the chaconne, for example brings “an entire series of metamorphoses to the theme”, by exposing it repeatedly.
E.g. 1
The 1st Part (Moderatamente mosso, poco rubato, quasi una threnia): - “the tragic motive”
6 Ovidiu Drimba, Istoria literaturii universale (A History of Universal Literature), vol. I, Editura Saeculum I.O. - Vestala, Bucharest, 1998, p. 118. 7 Ibidem.
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E.g. 2
The 2nd Part (Largo)
E.g. 3
The 3rd Part (Allegro moderato) - Passacaglia
Table 1
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4. The 3rd Part, Passacaglia In 1978, Sigismund Toduţă, in collaboration with Vasile Herman, wrote Formele muzicale ale Barocului în operele lui J. S. Bach (The Musical Forms of the Baroque in the Works of J.S. Bach’s) vol. III, dedicated to the Variation and the Rondo; the passacaglia is defined together with the chaconne, the ground and the follia, as “musical forms of basso ostinato”; “the syllabic seed, a schematic micro-unit and the basso ostinato are a foundation on which the harmonic-polyphonic fabric is woven”; the principle of repetition (identical or varied) of the basso ostinato progresses in parallel with the renewal of the harmonic-polyphonic tissue which overlaps it, generating a chain: a – a var.1 – a var.2 – a var.3 etc. Among the most famous and appreciated passacaglia we mention: Johann Sebastian Bach - Passacaglia and Fugue in C minor for organ, BWV 582 (1716-178, 17409) Johannes Brahms - Symphony no. 4 in E minor op. 98 (1884-5), p. IV, Allegro energico e passionato, Giaccomo Puccini – Tosca, the end of act I, Scarpia’s aria “Va, Tosca”, Anton Webern: Passacaglia, op. 1 (1908), Aaron Copland Passacaglia for Piano (1921–22), Alban Berg - Wozzeck (1922), act I, scene 4 – Passacaglia (theme – a series of 12 sounds), Dmitri Shostakovich: Symphony no. 8, op. 65, part IV (1943) and the Concerto no. 1 for violin and orchestra, part III, Hindemith in Quartet no.5, op. 32 (1923), in the lieder cycle Das Marienleben (1922–3), Cardillac (1926) and Die Harmonie der Welt (1956–7) as well as Krzysztof Penderecki - Lucas-Passion (1966), part II. Passacaglia was also chosen by Romanian composers: Tudor Ciortea, (Passacaglia and Toccata for orchestra), Dan Dediu (PaksakAGLIA for cello solo and Passacaglia cathoptrica for organ -1993), Vasile Herman (Chaconne - 2003 – the theme in the bass remembers of the profile and symmetry of Bach’s Passacaglia). Toduță mainly uses this form as single standing, throughout his entire creation, Passacaglia for piano (1943) or as part of the most diverse genres Sonatina for piano, the 2nd part (1950), 7 Choral Preludes for organ, the 4th and the - 6th (1952), Mioriţa – ballad-oratorio, the 5th part, (1971), Concerto per strumenti a fiato e batteria (1970) and lastly, the oratorio Pe urmele lui Horea – Following Horea, theme in the 14th part (1981). The tragic ethos of Symphony no.3 could be Ovid’s destiny, the death of Toduță’s wife (1954), George Enescu’s death (May 4, 1955) and the revolution in Hungary (1956).
8 W. Schmieder, apud Sigismund Toduţă, Op. cit., p.72. 9 F.G. Griepenkerl, apud Sigismund Toduţă, Op. cit., p. 72.
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When comparing the lives and creation of the two personalities, poet Ovid and musician Sigismund Toduţă, we will find similarities which bring them close: studies in Italy, preoccupation with rhetoric, hermeneutics and mythology, as well as the manner of treating myths, by reviving them in contemporary times.
Orchestration It is well-known that, at the time when it was first played, some people found resemblances between the last part of Toduță’s Symphony no. 3 and the finale of Brahms’ 4th Symphony, which upset the composer and probably made him renounce the passacaglia. Surprisingly though, critics failed to notice that the orchestration of the Ovid Symphony bears more resemblance to Mahler’s 9th rather than to Brahms’ 4th Symphony. The orchestration of the 3rd symphony, “Ovid” is made up of: 3 Flutes (Flute III also Piccolo flute), 3 Oboes (Oboe III also Cor Anglais), 3 Clarinets in C (Clarinet III in C also Bass Clarinet in C), 3 Bassoons (Bassoon III also Double bassoon); 4 Horns in F, 3 Trumpets in C, 3 Trombones, Tuba; I. 3 Timpani, [II. Triangle, Large suspended cymbal, small suspended cymbal], III Small side drum with string, [Bass Drum, big Gong], Celesta, [Xilophone]; [Pianoforte], Harp, 16 Violins I, 14 Violins II, 12 Violas, 10 Cellos, 8 Double Basses. It really looks more like Mahler’s (The 9th Symphony) and not Brahms’ orchestration!
Analytical aspects The generating (tragic) cell of The 3rd Symphony (EFFIGY) appears as a motto, on the first page of the orchestra score. The musical meaning leads us to a tetrachord, interpreted as “a trichord with anacrusis”. Ştefan Angi noted: “sometimes the symbol can comprise the entire artistic work, becoming the dominant element in the entire work”.
The 3rd part of Symphony no.3 “Ovid” The tempo is Allegro moderato, made up of 26 variations on ostinato (28 in the manuscript for piano); the motto-theme, mentioned on the first page of the score is amplified to passacaglia dimensions. Masterful gradation and accumulation in the variation process (quasi Brahms-like) are only interrupted by the ethos of variations XIII-XVI (dolente). The symphony ends with one final appearance (the only one in major) of the tragic motive, the major chord ending in apotheosis with the discourse dedicated to Ovid.
304 HISTORY OF A FORGOTTEN PASSACAGLIA: THE SYMPHONY NO.3 “OVID” FINALE…
The theme of the Passacaglia The Bach theme is anacrusic; winding profile ascending yielded tetrachord; 8 bars; two sections of 4 bars: question-answer, climax in the first section, second part-successions of collapses, final note – abyss; the theme – in pedal point; comes from C-B-A flat-G. Albert Schweitzer on the passacaglia’s theme: “the Kolossal-Thema pulsates, from the moment of its appearance just as the clear image of flawless order”…“the chaconne and the passacaglia come from old dance forms and are characterized by their evolution above an ostinato theme in ternary movement, of 8 bars”.10 The Brahms theme has a crusic, ascending profile, with a climax in the second section, followed by a “fall” on cadence. The Webern theme is crusic, the profile resembling the Brahms theme, the difference residing in the binary meter of the Webern theme. The Toduţă theme is crusic, with an ascending profile (Protasis).
E.g. 4
The doubled motive later also appears descending (Apodosis), with interchanged sounds according to Bach’s model. The theme is made up of two identical sections: the motto of the Symphony, initial descending tetrachord, appears transposed in reversed and doubled D: D-Eb-F-Gb G#- A-B-C. The ternary meter, 8 bars, the succession ST-T-ST reminds us of mode II with limited transposition in Messiaen’s system. Another hypothesis connected to the motto leads us to The Chamber Symphony op. 33, Enescu’s last opus, completed on May 28, 1954. Ştefan Niculescu identified “mode II with limited transposition” in the Bridge of the sonata in the 1st part of the Chamber Symphony, which, by being reprised four times, becomes a “theme with variations”.
10 Albert Schweitzer, Joh. Seb. Bach. Leipzig, Verlag Breitkopf u. Härtel, 1956, p. 258, 359, quoted by Sigismund Toduţă, Formele muzicale ale barocului în operele lui J.S. Bach (The Musical Forms of the Baroque in the Works of J.S. Bach), vol. III, Editura Muzicală, Bucharest, 1978, p. 98.
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The 14th Variation Marcia funebre from the Passacaglia, can be a reference to the 2nd part of the Chamber Symphony - Adagio (Funebre). The last motive in the ending of Enescu’s opus, in fff on an E major elliptical chord of third leads us to Ovid’s tragic motive which spans over the entire symphony and closes the Golgotha of variations. The Effigy theme, made up of 8 bars, is outlined on two different levels, in an alert tempo (Allegro moderato), with the annotation forte e deciso, in triple meter (3/4). The orchestration corresponds to the message, the theme appears in high, equal values, in the low register of the wood instruments (bassoon, contrabassoon) and trochaic rhythm, with a Sospiratio effect in the low pitched instruments (cello, double bass). Var.1. (bars 17-24) The discourse amplifies and takes on a threatening tone, fortissimo e deciso. Meter and rhythm remain the same. The ascending profile in a loud timbre of the high-pitched woodwinds overlaps the ascending theme of the bassoon and the low-pitched strings. Var.2. (bars 9-16) The second variation brings back the tragic motive of the first part, the ascending line of the “sobbing” being supported by the trochaic rhythm of the ascending Effigy. After four bars, the direction of the levels is reversed: the tragic “sobbing” motive ascends, the trochaic Effigy descends. In terms of timbre, the variation is endowed with color by the woodwinds’ dialogue. The forte dynamics will decrease towards the end of the variation. Var.3 (bars 25-32) point out the first lyrical part through the piano cantabile dynamics and the restrained movement of the pochissimo ritenuto finale: the Soprano contours a cantilena consisting of the diatonic variant of the E motive (T-ST-T – E-D-C#-B), with the ascending agglutination of the “sobbing” and their sequencing. Var.4 (bars 33-48) is double in extension, the return to the initial tempo and the apodictic character of the violin and viola theme, marked by the double basses, prefigures the beginning of a long row of labor and disquietude. Theme E will emerge in soprano voice in the woodwinds, supported by the horns, while the picture is made whole by the figuration of the cellos. Var.10/1211 - the climax of the first section (bars 110-127, actually 109-126 – 1 missing bar 17 bars), is amplified in terms of dimensions (18 bars), in a quick and sparkling tempo, Lo stesso tempo e scintillanto, in 6/4 meter signature, which renders possible the accumulation of triolets in a bewildering toccata rhythm with full sonorities - Assai forte, poco ff, preparing the orchestral tutti (bars 116-123). This part impresses through a dense writing in complementary rhythm, with ample sonorities, many divisi and doublings. Theme E in the
11 The second figure stands for the variation number in the piano reduction (n.n).
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bassoon is late to emerge (after 2 bars), prepared by a contrapuntal dialogue and arising with a descending, double-dotted profile. The second wave will bear it towards discant, ascending, in equal values. The harmony becomes complete with chromatic mixtures of staccato triolets in the flutes, oboes, clarinets, horns, trumpets, trombones. The entire variation is a display of forces, followed by the dispersion of sounds, preparing the slow part. Var.11/13 (bars 128-135), 8 bars, is a slow, lyrical, elegy-like part, in a rare Molto sostenuto tempo, in pianissimo, 6/4, high values, in D minor. The theme, played by the solo oboe, assumes the shape of a diatonic aulodia, made up of the trichord and the porrectus idioma. Theme E emerges as chromatic harmony in the strings, con sordino. The unusual color is rendered by the accompanying harp (in a descending glissando). Var.14/16 - double, amplifies the tragic of the previous variation (bars 173-189) in Tempo di Marcia funebre, a somber part which maintains the ample 6/4 meter. The characteristic dotted rhythm, the “sanglots” effect will be accomplished by the triolets made up of sixteenth notes. The dynamics will point out an elevation from ppp< mf, poco f, ff , reaching a climax (bars 180-184), followed by a deceleration - rall. molto and estinto by the >pppp. Var.15/17 (bars 190-197) The reprise brings back the Tempo I, allegro moderato, and the initial 3/4 meter signature, in forte, molto deciso, with high values. The character stays tragic, nevertheless energetic. The strings are missing. The Finale, Var. 25/27 (bars 298-313) and 26/2812, are double (16 bars each), in which the Piu mosso tempo, with the abrupt staccatos of the unison theme seem to lead it to paroxysm. The full, fortissimo dynamics, the reverse isorhythmic progression, the mixtures amplified by doubling, the hemiolas and the ascending glissandos set to the sounds of the Effigy theme prepare the closing of the Symphony with one last manifestation - the only one in the major scale - of the tragic motive, while the major chord concludes, in apotheosis, the discourse dedicated to Ovid.
Conclusions On May 7 (Brahms’ birthday!), 1957, Symphony no.3 “Ovid” was completed with an orchestration resembling that of Mahler; on September 28-29 the first performance took place at the Cluj State Philharmonic, conducted by Anatol Chisadji;
12 Unfortunately, no recorded version renders these variations in their entirety. A few leaps occur, as inferred from the orchestra scores: bars 173-188; 205-240; 273-280; 281-288; 281-288; 313-328.
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- The Symphony’s score was not printed until 1975, whereby the Passacaglia was left out – a unique case, since Toduţă had not composed another symphonic work in two parts (!); this edition contains extra passages as compared to the performed variants; - The piano reduction, completed on February 7, 1957 (with the author’s annotation - 12’30”) in a form that does not match any of the two performances (Chisadji and Elenescu); - The symphonic Passacaglia has 26 variations and a Coda. The leaps could be inferred out of the orchestra parts: bars 173-188; 205-240; 273-280; 281-288; 281-288; 313-328 (89 bars); - Passacaglia in the reduction variant has 28 variations (2 more than the manuscript of the orchestra parts); it is merely another type of division as compared to the orchestra part; the table created for this study clarifies this issue; - Pianist Géza Szabó recorded the entire piano version on magnetic tape on September 21, 1957 (he had received the manuscript on August 28) – proving how highly valued the work was.
The contrasts typical of Ovid’s rhetoric can be encountered within the symphony. Thus, Parts I and II are pluri-thematic, while Part III is mono- thematic. Likewise, the first two parts begin and end in p or pp and include one dynamic climax each, while the finale begins forcefully, has a contrasting middle (dolente) and ends in ff. Gradation and accumulation in the variation process (almost Brahms-like) are interrupted by the 13-16 variations’ ethos (dolente). The symphony ends triumphantly with a final invocation, in major, of the tragic motive, symbolizing Ovid’s entering into the Pantheon.
Symphony no.3 “Ovid” by Sigismund Toduţă as seen by its contemporaries Cornel Ţăranu, Note de concert (Concert Notes), Tribuna journal no. 10, 1960:
“The present performance has managed to confirm and even surpass our previous impressions, otherwise very favorable [...]. Carrying the seal of evident mastery, more obvious in the musical architecture or in the flawless and sometimes brilliant management of the orchestra, Symphony no.3 has also the musical language of balanced contemporary times.”13
13 Cornel Ţăranu, Note de concert (Concert Notes), Tribuna journal no. 10, 1960.
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Zeno Vancea: Sigismund Toduţă, Muzica journal, 1977, no.4:
The dramatic, the tragic, the passion – although present in certain pages of the symphony Ovid [...] are not very characteristic of his emotional nature [...], estranged from nostalgia and romantic lyrical effusions. The manly reserve in translating emotions often gives his music a mostly meditative character, while leaving room, in numerous works, for the expression of joy of various intensities.”
Translated from Romanian by Roxana Huza
REFERENCES
Balea, Ilie Simfonia Tristiilor şi Ponticelor (Symphony of the Tristias and Ponticas), in the vol. „Dialogul artelor” (A Dialogue of the Arts), Editura pentru Literatură, Bucharest, 1969, p. 299. Călinescu, George, Scriitori străini (Foreign Writers), Editura pentru Literatură Universală, Bucharest, 1967. Drimba, Ovidiu, Istoria literaturii universale (A History of Universal Literature), vol. I, Editura Saeculum I.O. - Vestala, Bucharest, 1998. Herman, Vasile, Forme variaţionale în muzica românească contemporană (Variational Forms in Contemporary Romanian Music), in Lucrări de muzicologie (Musicology Papers), vol. 22, Editura MediaMusica, Cluj- Napoca, 2003. Toduţă, Sigismund with Herman, Vasile: Formele muzicale ale Barocului în operele lui J. S. Bach (The Musical Forms of the Baroque in the Works of J.S. Bach) vol. III Variaţiunea. Rondoul (The Variation. The Rondo), Editura Muzicală Bucharest, 1978. Türk, Hans Peter in Variaţiunile pe ostinato în creaţia lui Sigismund Toduţă (Variations on Ostinato in the Works of Sigismund Toduţă), in Lucrări de muzicologie (Musicology Papers), vol. 14, Cluj-Napoca Ţăranu, Cornel, Note de concert (Concert Notes), Tribuna journal no.10, 1960. Vancea, Zeno, Sigismund Toduţă, Muzica journal, 1977, no. 4. Voiculescu, Dan and Türk, Hans Peter, Sigismund Toduţă şi şcoala componistică clujeană (Sigismund Toduţă and the Cluj composition school), in Lucrări de muzicologie (Musicology Papers), 1984, vol. 15.
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STUDIA UBB MUSICA, LXIII, 2, 2018 (p. 311 – 326) (RECOMMENDED CITATION) DOI:10.24193/subbmusica.2018.2.21
HAUNTING SOUNDSCAPES OF TRANSYLVANIA: LIGETI’S RESEARCH STAY AT THE FOLKLORE INSTITUTE IN BUCHAREST
BIANCA ŢIPLEA TEMEŞ1
SUMMARY: Ligeti’s visit to the Folklore Institute in Bucharest in 1949/50 was a brief but defining episode of his youth, and one which proved to have a strong impact on his work. As one of the least explored stages of his early development, this Romanian research stay provided the composer with an entirely new set of ideas which were later manifested in his works, first as direct citations (Baladă și joc, Romanian Concerto, Musica ricercata, Bagatelles for Wind Quintet), and then as distant, barely discernible echoes (Piano Concerto, Violin Concerto, Hamburgisches Konzert). According to Ligeti’s own comments and manuscript sketches (held at the Paul Sacher archives), he derived and developed some of his most original compositional techniques from folk genres such as colinda, hora lungă, bucium signals and bocet originating in Transylvania, Banat and Muntenia, music he heard in various villages of the Carpathian region, and on wax cylinders in Bucharest. In order to show the long-term impact of Romanian folklore on his music the approach will capture two images of Ligeti on either side of the Iron Curtain: first it will explore how he managed, without political compromise, to avoid falling foul of the rules of the communist regime on the use of ethnic elements in the new ideology aesthetics and then how he turned this source of inspiration into a uniquely modern idiom after relocating to the west. Employing Romanian folk elements while in eastern and, later, in western Europe, Ligeti allows the listener to perceive the diverse multi-ethnic roots of his music, which pervaded his inspiration and generated a unique sound world.
Keywords: Ligeti, Enescu, Romanian folk music, Iron Curtain, Bucharest, Transylvania
Born in a multi-cultural region such as Transylvania, Ligeti’s contact with Romanian folk music was a constant during his formative years. In this environment he became acquainted with the soundscape of Transylvanian
1 Reader Ph.D., Gh. Dima Music Academy, 25, Ion I.C. Brătianu Street, Cluj-Napoca. E-mail: [email protected]
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villages, listening to colinde (carols), folk dances, hore, doine (yearning songs), bocete (funeral songs), etc., all types which Bartók had already collected and studied in depth at the beginning of the 20th century. This sound world was already part of Ligeti’s musical heritage when, in 1945, he began to study at the Liszt Academy in Budapest, after hesitating over whether to head south to Bucharest, or west to the Hungarian capital. Although the cultural life of the two cities was very different (Bucharest was strongly connected to Paris, and Budapest to Vienna) in terms of political context, the two cities shared the same destiny behind the Iron Curtain. In 1993 Ligeti delivered a speech in which he expressed his sense of being stylistically imprisoned, trapped between the walls of the avant- garde and those of the past: “I want to escape”2, he bluntly said. If, in the nineties, he was referring to metaphorical walls, the ones he had to climb during the late forties and early fifties were made with bricks of solid ideology. And indeed, he did wish to escape, partly because he had been commissioned in Budapest to write a piece in honor of Stalin or Rákósi, a task he wanted to avoid3. The commission was in fact nothing but a punishment for his overly contrapuntal compositional style, a technique associated by the communist regime with religious music, and therefore banned. His escape route was provided by a short-term scholarship at the Folklore Institute in Bucharest, and he arrived on Romanian soil by the end of 1949. The time spent in Bucharest contributed substantially to Ligeti’s Romanian musical identity. This is clearly shown by certain of the manuscripts held at the Sacher archives in Basle, in particular the 27 transcriptions of Sketchbook no. 34 in which Ligeti carefully notates the source for each of his transcriptions, allowing us to observe today his familiarity with such important Romanian folk music collections as those assembled by Sabin Drăgoi, George Breazul, and Alexandru Berdescu4. The transcriptions, made together with Mircea Chiriac during a short trip to the village of Covăsinț, mark the source of the theoretical conclusions formulated by the composer in two Romanian folk music studies that were
2 György Ligeti’s talk in 1993 at the New England Conservatory, cited in Alex Ross: The Rest is Noise, Picador, New York, 2007, p. 506. “When you are accepted in a club, without willing or without noticing you take over certain habits of what is in and what is out. Tonality was definitely out. To write melodies, even non-tonal melodies, was absolutely taboo. Music has to be a priori…. It worked when it was new, but it became stale. Now there is no taboo; everything is allowed. But one cannot simply go back to tonality, it´s not the way. We must find a way of neither going back nor continuing the avant-garde. I am in a prison: one wall is the avant-garde, the other wall is the past, and I want to escape.” 3 Bianca Țiplea Temeș, “Ligeti’s Romanian Concerto. From Wax Cylinders to Symphony Orchestra”, in Studia UBB Musica, no.1/2013, Cluj University Press, p. 52. 4 See for more details: Bianca Țiplea Temeș, “Ligeti’s Romanian Concerto. From Wax Cylinders to Symphony Orchestra”, in Studia UBB Musica, no.1/2013, Cluj University Press, p. 55.
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later to be published in Budapest5. The original Romanian text of one of these articles is kept by the Paul Sacher Foundation, bearing a slightly different title: “Armonizarea poporană exemplificată prin muzica lăutarilor din comuna Covăsinț, jud. Arad”. György Kurtág himself highlighted the importance of the theoretical conclusions Ligeti reached in these writings after studying the folk band from Covăsinţ:
Much has been written about how he profited from folklore research (that of Brăiloiu, Kubik, Simha Arom, and of course, again and again, Bartók), but it seems that even he forgot that it was the young Ligeti (1950–53) who revealed in a seminal essay the functioning and harmonizing patterns of Romanian folk orchestras.6
But in terms of creative activity as a composer, one of the musical fruits of this sudden escape was his first orchestral piece – the Romanian Concerto, acknowledged as the most notable achievement of Ligeti’s ethno- musicological journey both to Bucharest and to Covăsinţ village. Listeners may surrender easily to Ligeti’s joyful piece without noticing that its ethnic sounds distil a difficult historical moment in which both Hungary and Romania were moving inside the frontiers of the Eastern bloc. This colourful work captures the historical context of the years 1949-1951, a period which marks its gestation and completion. A historical scrutiny of the year 1949, when Ligeti came to Bucharest, reveals a series of dramatic events which impacted at every level on the destiny of both countries. The wheels of terror had been set in motion behind the Iron Curtain and were meant to put the entire Eastern bloc in political and ideological synchrony. In Hungary, 1949 was saw the execution of László Rajk after a process framed by Rákosi and molded according to the purest Stalinist pattern. Ligeti arrived in the neighboring capital city of Bucharest only to find a strikingly yet somehow unsurprisingly similar situation. In 1949, Romania under the rule of Gheorghe Gheorghiu-Dej was witnessing the first communist executions and it was also the year when the horrific “Piteşti experiment” had begun, an experiment which actually enforced ideological “re-education” through torture.
5 “Egy aradmegyei román együttes” („A Romanian ensemble from Arad County”), in Kodály Elmékkönyv. Zenetudományi Tanulmanyok I, Akadémiai Kiadó, Budapest, 1953; „Népzenekutatás Romániában” („Research on Romanian Folk Music”), in Új Zenei Szemle, I/3, August 1950, Budapest. 6 Bálint András Varga: György Kurtág; Three Interviews and Ligeti Homages (Rochester: University of Rochester Press, 2009), p. 104.
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Culture harnessed itself to the objectives of the new ideology, and it is important to understand the brutal impact this had on both culture and artists; Ligeti’s arrival in Bucharest coincided with a moment in which the Society of Romanian Composers was completely reshaping its purposes, according to the Prague Congress, held in 1948. ”In 1949, Matei Socor, a faithful follower of communist propaganda, had been appointed the new head of the Society of Romanian Composers, directly after such musicians as Enescu and Jora had been removed from their positions of president and vice president respectively. Socor was rigorously imposing the strictures determined by the new ideology then engulfing Eastern Europe7, and started to re-organize the Society according to their new political criteria for artists. An official list arranged the categories of musicians by their political ‘usefulness’. In order to understand something of how these definitions were arrived at, it may be mentioned that within the ‘suspicious’ category fell such names as Mihail Jora (who had acquired the reputation of being ‘nest of old bourgeoisie´s aesthetics’), and among those ‘to be removed’8 were many notable names, some of them already based abroad, including Constantin Brăiloiu, Marcel Mihalovici, and Dinu Lipatti”9. New ideologies stormed culture and forced artists to follow new currents towards absurd goals. The wooden rhetoric and the threats went hand in hand, openly showing the consequences for those artists who would cling to Western or bourgeois values. One fragment from a newspaper article sounds a note of horror: “all those who are against the bright path of our Romanian Popular Democracy have already been and will be eliminated”10. A campaign to intimidate composers into following the new norms of socialist realism had been adopted, in order to force artists to rid themselves of their “ideological confusion”. Heated debates took place during this Conference organized by the Society of the Romanian Composers in 21-22 October 1949, a few months before Ligeti’s arrival in Bucharest, and acknowledged artists were criticized for anachronistic or Universalist tendencies. Alfred Mendelssohn was a participant in the Composers´ Congress held in Prague, and delivered after his return
7 Octavian Lazăr Cosma: Universul Muzicii Româneşti. Uniunea Compozitorilor şi Muzicologilor din România - 1920-1995/The Universe of Romanian Music. The Society of the Composers and Musicologists of Romania - 1920-1995, Editura Muzicală a U.C.M.R., Bucureşti, 1995, p. 176. 8 Octavian Lazăr Cosma, op. cit., pp. 186-188. Information extracted by Octavian Lazăr Cosma from the Dossier 434/1949 Arhivele Statului – Bucureşti, Fondul Uniunii Compozitorilor. 9 Bianca Țiplea Temeș, “Ligeti’s Romanian Concerto. From Wax Cylinders to Symphony Orchestra”, in Studia UBB Musica, no.1/2013, Cluj University Press, p. 52. 10 Cornelia Pascal: ”A început curăţenia la Conservator” (“Cleaning at the Conservatory has started”), in Studentul Român, IV, 6, 27/ ian. 1948, p. 6, cited in Octavian Lazăr Cosma, op. cit., p. 159.
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a lecture at the National Conference in Bucharest. He emphasized the unconditional nature of the impositions from the Soviet Union, stating: “What works for the Soviet composers also works for ours”11. Ana Pauker, a key figure of the new regime in Romania, foreign Minister during the time Ligeti was in Bucharest, was showing “the way” in which Romanian artists were expected to reshape their approach to the arts, underlining a clear disassociation from Western culture: “Composers should learn and UN-learn a lot”12. This meant that the regime had started to fence new music off from the West and from the “poisonous” Bourgeoisie. In fact, new ideology and the values of Western culture had officially become polar opposites, not only in Romania or Hungary, but across the entire communist bloc. Ligeti’s temporary escape to Bucharest therefore turned out merely to be a change of scenery: the ideological turmoil was the same. A long list of the new emergent repertoire in tune with the new ideology had been drawn up in Romania, as well as in the other countries behind the Iron Curtain, showing a grotesque uniformity of topics and a strong working class flavour13 (see the titles of the footnote). The use of folklore in exchange was strongly encouraged in the Report of the Conference adopted in the Eastern European countries but, as expected, also the use of folk music in composition should follow strict rules. Music was meant to be an ideological weapon and folklore, employed in a certain “politically correct” way, was part of the arsenal of communist propaganda. The slightest deviation became subject to the harshest of critiques and censorship. Apparently, the writing of a folk-based piece was like walking through a minefield, and Ligeti’s refuge among the wax cylinders in Bucharest was not safe ground either. In Romania, Constantin Silvestri was criticized for the improper manner in which he employed folk elements14 (“formalist, decadent”). Enescu himself was blacklisted and it was said that after composing the two Rhapsodies “he breaks up with real life and from the source of inspiration which is the people, and allows himself to be overwhelmed by the musical ‘rotten stuff’ of the West”15.
11 Apud. Octavian Lazăr Cosma, op. cit., p. 171. Alfred Mendelssohn’s speech was later published under the title Quo vadis musica in Flacăra, I, 41/10 October 1948, pp.1; 3. 12 Apud. Octavian Lazăr Cosma, op. cit., p. 168. 13 I. Morozov – Plugarii (The Ploughmen); C. Palade – Strungarii (The Lathe Men); A. Alessandrescu – 1st of May Cantata; Z. Vancea – Stalin´s name; H. Jerea – Ode to the Stalinian law; M. Andricu – Cantata for Stalin; Erasmus Minkievici – Wishes from the Carpathians to comrade Stalin ; A. Mendelssohn – Oratorio Lenin´s Voice; E. Rubinstein – On Lenin´s Way. 14 Apud. Octavian Lazăr Cosma, op. cit., p. 179. 15 Petre Iosif – ”Pentru combatarea unui hipnotic periculos”, in Flacăra, II, 40 (92)/8 octombrie 1949, p. 3, p. 11, cited in Octavian Lazăr Cosma, op. cit., p. 184.
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The pieces “in Romanian style” (which meant by that time the use of the folk music in a more sophisticated, subtle way) had being sanctioned as well: in his Report, presented at the National Conference in 1949, Matei Socor clearly set out how the rules of folk music should be approached, also emphasizing how it shouldn’t: “Some of the productions in Romanian style suggest the cosmopolite image of the boyar, who, from the verandah of his feudal lordly house, takes delight of the Romanian picturesque landscapes. Usually, such compositions ´in Romanian style´ are full of nostalgic, mystical or entertainment elements, and sometimes with a tone of mockery for revolutionary figures of the past, or towards the simple people of our country.”16 In the same Report of the Conference held in 1949, the employment of folk heritage was highly encouraged, ONLY if they were to be provided with a new, socialist content. Various participants delivered speeches, showing their adherence to the new order. Regarding folk music, here is what should have not been done while employing folk material: A. Stoia, in his intervention accused a certain category of composers who “take folk themes, mutilate and expand them over a few chords and a few metrical changes and present them as Romanian music compositions”17. Also the most authentic folk music had to be censored; Harry Brauner18, director of the Folklore Institute in Bucharest, decreed that some folk music genres were outdated, such as “doina” (a slow, yearning song, so emblematic for Romanian folk heritage). This genre, according to Brauner, was related to the past and had no longer any meaning in the present. Besides, he drew attention and called for prudence in approaching the fast folk dance melodies19. Even the most acknowledged musicians of the past were monitored and could not get away from the critiques, among them Bartók himself; it was Ovidiu Varga who showed that also “in Bartók´s music there can be found a series of negative, formalist elements, especially in the way he treated the folk music from the harmonic point of view, influences which had ‘unhealthy’ consequences even for Romanian composition….”20 What a contrast with Constantin Brăiloiu’s words expressed right after the death of Bartók, in 1945, saying that Romanians had just lost a great friend!
16 Apud. Octavian Lazăr Cosma, op. cit., p. 194. 17 Apud. Octavian Lazăr Cosma, op. cit., p. 196. 18 Soon to be arrested and judged in the same trial as Lucreţiu Pătrăşcanu. 19 Apud. Octavian Lazăr Cosma, op. cit., p. 197. 20 Apud. Octavian Lazăr Cosma, op. cit., p. 198.
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How then in such a hostile context for artists would Ligeti dare to have recourse to Romanian or Hungarian folklore of his native land and make use of it in his compositions? The whole situation briefly described above sheds new light on Ligeti’s starting point as a composer and allow us to retrace the long distance he still had to travel towards becoming the iconic avant-garde composer we researchers speak about so enthusiastically today. First of all, his interest in folk music was completely genuine, as an interview in Romanian given to the composer Nicolae Brînduş, in ’79, confirms21. In his dialogue with Nicolae Brînduș, Ligeti described his experiences in folk music collection, moving from Bucharest to the village of Covăsinț, and emphasizing the long term impact of all this on his creativity. He completed the Romanian Concerto, his folk-inspired piece, when he returned to Budapest, passing through an intermediary stage (the piece Baladă şi joc), but the restrictions in employing folk heritage were in force also in Hungary. Surely, all the critiques expressed at the Conference in Bucharest could very well apply to Ligeti´s Romanian Concerto, even though at a superficial glance, Ligeti’s approach to folk music seemed in keeping with the regime’s specifications. But to compare the clear cut instructions stated in the Report with the score of the Romanian Concerto is to detect a number of discrepancies which might show that Ligeti was in fact ignoring the new order, while simply searching for his own artistic identity. Indeed, the Romanian Concerto showcases all the “errors” pointed out in the Report of the National Conference held in Bucharest in 1949: improper harmonic treatment according to the new aesthetic standards, fragmentation of folk melodies, but worst of all, resorting to the forbidden fruit of dissonance, something which also may have raised the eyebrows of the Eastern Bloc censors. By extracting an introductory motif from a Romanian folk dance called “Sârba” which he transcribed in Bucharest, he emphasized or “stained” the coda segment with an extended minor second of the wind instruments (4th movement, bars 610-620). Could one speculate that the young composer has encoded his own voice here with the same exclamation: “I want to escape”? Probably the extended minor second was one of the reasons why the premiere was soon to be banned in communist Hungary.
21 Brînduş, Nicolae: ”Interviu cu György Ligeti” (”Interview with György Ligeti”), in Muzica, No. 1/January, 1980, Bucharest, p. 40. The fragment from this interview is cited in English translation in: Bianca Țiplea Temeș, “Ligeti’s Romanian Concerto. From Wax Cylinders to Symphony Orchestra”, in Studia UBB Musica, no.1/2013, Cluj University Press, p. 59.
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Firstly, Ligeti never intended to please the regime. In terms of the research and composition of folk music, he simply followed in the footsteps of Bartók, whom he greatly admired. The 28-year old composer relied on the most authentic melodic sources, all extracted and transcribed from the wax cylinders of the Folklore Institute in Bucharest, as is shown by Ligeti’s manuscripts held by the Sacher archives22. In his Romanian Concerto, besides the choice of most authentic sources, Ligeti used what would have seemed to the new ears, strange harmonies in the slow movement, which mimic the bucium signals in the Carpathian Mountains, exploring the acoustic universe of un-tempered intonation23. There is no doubt that until 1956, the folk melodies had not been absorbed in Ligeti’s music as a positive response to the regime’s demand. The composer was constantly “haunted” by this sound world of Transylvania and one of the proofs is precisely the evocation of this instrument, with its pastoral and sometimes funeral signals, in his Hamburg Concerto, a piece composed on the other side of the Iron Curtain. That Ligeti did not use folk music by taking orders or as a circumstantial fact, is shown by other works written both before and after moving to the West, thus drawing a full circle. His rich memory stock of Romanian folklore flourished in his music since the late 70s in an unexpected way, nurturing his language from the underground. One of these cases was discussed with musicologist Richard Steinitz24 and sparked my interest in tracing the origin of a melody with strong folk flavour. It is an almost identical quotation of a melodic line in one of Enescu´s Symphonies and in Ligeti’s Musica ricercata (1952), also in 6 Bagatelles for Wind Quintet (1953), accompanied by a pointillist figuration, and later, outside the Iron Curtain, in his Violin Concerto composed between 1989-1993, when folk music was no longer a political requirement. This striking melodic coincidence requires some explanations: first of all, Ligeti couldn’t have known Enescu’s 5th Symphony, because the composer left it un-orchestrated.
22 Bianca Țiplea Temeș, “Ligeti’s Romanian Concerto. From Wax Cylinders to Symphony Orchestra”, in Studia UBB Musica, no.1/2013, Cluj University Press, pp. 61-70. 23 Ibidem, pp. 65-66. 24 See Richard Steinitz, “The Innate Melodist“ in György Ligeti’s Cultural Identities (Amy Bauer and Márton Kerékfy eds.), Routledge, Abingdon, Oxon - New York, 2018, pp. 68-69.
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E.g. 1
Ligeti - Sechs Bagatellen für Bläserquintett (no. 3), bars 1-18 © Schott, Mainz
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E.g. 2
Enescu – Symphony no. 5, 2nd movement (orchestration completed by Pascal Bentoiu) © Editura Muzicală, București, 2004
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On Enescu´s manuscript, held by the Enescu Museum in Bucharest, at the end of the second movement which employs the pastoral- nostalgic folk melody, one can find the composer’s French note “Sinaia, Luminisch, ce 8 juillet 1941” (his summer villa in the Carpathians). Taking into account this chronological aspect, it is evident that at the time Ligeti wrote Musica ricercata or the Six Bagatelles he couldn´t have possibly known Enescu´s piece. Nor had Ligeti heard this melody when composing his Violin Concerto, where the folk theme generated an unusually beautiful ocarinas chorale, because Enescu’s 5th Symphony was only publicly performed in Romania in the 90s (orchestrated by Pascal Bentoiu in 1995).
E.g. 3
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Ligeti – Violin Concerto, 2nd movement, ”Aria, Hoquetus, Chorale”, bars 75-84 © Schott, Mainz
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Seeking to explain this striking coincidence, an answer may be found, once again, at the Folklore Institute in Bucharest. In 1932, Enescu was an elected member of the Romanian Academy. Among his duties was to express an opinion and write reports on musical or scientific works to be published or publicly presented. A number of important folk music collections were viewed by him25, which later entered the library stock of the Institute in Bucharest. Enescu also had the opportunity to listen in 1938 to some 30 discs recorded by Constantin Brăiloiu, containing Romanian folk music from all over the country, recordings which had also been broadcast in 1937 and 1938 by the Radio station in the Romanian capital. The discs could have very well ended up at the Folklore Institute where Ligeti was conducting research in 1949/1950. Could this be an explanation for the folk song used by both Enescu and Ligeti independently of one another? The research is underway and will hopefully prove conclusive. This melodic coincidence only goes to show that for Ligeti, being “haunted” by these melodies in his early pieces inspired by the Romanian folk music was something which came from a sound musical instinct, and was not an enthusiastic response to a pre-determined ideology. The Romanian Concerto, Musica Ricercata, Baladă și joc did not meet the requirements or fit the template of the new aesthetics, even though at a first glance one could sense a pure folkloristic style. Using an enriched lexicography during the last two decades of his creative life, references to Romanian and Carpathian region music persist and recur like remote autobiographical echoes. Once established in Vienna he distanced himself from the folk music, trying to update his vocabulary to the Western newest trends, away from any strictures imposed by the absurd communist regime. Yet, he makes a stunning affirmation when stating that his Kyrie section of the Requiem is in fact a heterophony of bocete (funeral songs heard in his native Transylvania)26 and also stating that he wanted to create here a bell of human voices27.
25 Enescu wrote reports on numerous folk collections and research publications: Sabin Drăgoi: 303 Colinde (1933); George Breazul: Carte de cântece (1935); Ion Caranica: 130 de melodii populare româneşti (beginning of the 40s); I. Stroescu: Hore şi sîrbe din Oltenia; Nicolae Ursu: Contribuţii muzicale la monografia comunei Sîrbova; Contribuţii muzicale la monografia comunei Măguri; Constantin Brăiloiu: Recordings of folk melodies from all over Romania - 30 discs (1938); Recordings of folk melodies collected from Transylvania (1943). See Mircea Voicana: George Enescu. Monografie, Ed. Academiei Republicii Socialiste România, Bucureşti, 1971, pp. 707; 991; 993. 26 Ligeti’s discussion with Constantin Rîpă, conductor of the Antifonia Choir (Gh. Dima Academy, Cluj-Napoca), during the Festival Musique d’Aujourd’hui, Strasbourg, 1994. The choir presented Ligeti’s Requiem. 27 Paul Sacher Stiftung, Ligeti Collection.
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Having stepped through the looking glass of Modernism, all these references were still vivid, yet during his last two decades of his creative life, Ligeti’s Transylvanian heritage is “reflected in his work as through a fractured mirror: with distorted and irregular fragments, broken pieces facing in different directions, sometimes reflecting the same object variously in different proportions. The effect is like viewing film footage through an impenetrable spider’s web and receiving only a low definition version of the source image”28. Trying to track down the pieces and recreating the original source of inspiration is a challenge for any contemporary researcher, and this manner of evoking the music of his native land, as a blurred remote object, could be called nostalgia in disguise. And here are some examples: the recurring sounds of the Transylvanian funeral melodic tradition emerge as through a veil in the Piano Study Autumn in Varsovie and in the Piano Concerto (the chromatic descendant line), the alphorn signals of the Carpathians are evoked again in several of his pieces the 1980s and the 1990s (Hamburgisches Konzert, among others), the folk dances permeate both his Violin Concerto as well as the Viola Sonata and the manuscripts of the Sacher archive fully confirm it. But nostalgia took also an overtly stated form: the purest way of yearning for his native land might be considered the Hora lungă29 of his Viola Sonata. Its haunting beauty is reproduced in an naturalistic way, without any artifice, allowing us to conclude that not even the avant-garde of the Western Europe could mute down the sonic echoes of his folk heritage. Leaving Romania and Hungary for Austria and Germany, Ligeti broadened his musical knowledge and assimilated a great variety of folk cultures in his oeuvre, yet his music always encrypted sonic memories of his homeland, maybe as a means of dealing with the homesick, as this source of inspiration fully worked its magic in his music both as undercurrents and overtones. In order to reinforce this hypothesis, I had recourse to Ligeti’s words, speaking in the early nineties about his cultural roots which blossomed in his music:
I am a Hungarian Jew born in Transylvania. I had Romanian nationality when I was born, and later became Hungarian citizen when I went to Budapest (this was very difficult to acquire!). I then fled to Vienna after the Revolution in 1956.
28 See Bianca Țiplea Temeș, “Ligeti and Romanian Folk Music. An Insight from the Paul Sacher Foundation“ in György Ligeti’s Cultural Identities (Amy Bauer and Márton Kerékfy eds.), Routledge, Abingdon, Oxon - New York, 2018, p. 134. 29 Folk genre from the region of Maramureș, North part of Transylvania.
324 HAUNTING SOUNDSCAPES OF TRANSYLVANIA: LIGETI’S RESEARCH ...
I didn’t become someone from the West, but rather someone who has roots in both parts of the world. In my heart I feel at home everywhere, in Vienna, in Hamburg, in Paris, in New York, or in Budapest. Everyone should be like that, a citizen of the world. But of course, I am tied to Transylvania, where I haven’t been in 36 years…30
No doubt, Ligeti’s words make any other concluding remark redundant.
R E F E R E N C E S
***, The manuscripts of the Ligeti Collection of the Paul Sacher Foundation, Basle. Brînduş, Nicolae: ”Interviu cu György Ligeti (Interview with György Ligeti)”, in Muzica, No. 1/January, 1980, Bucureşti, pp. 40-41. Lazăr Cosma, Octavian: Universul muzicii româneşti. Uniunea Compozitorilor şi Muzicologilor din România - 1920-1995 (The Univers of Romanian Music. The Society of the Composers and Musicologists of Romania – 1920- 1995), Editura Muzicală a U.C.M.R., Bucureşti, 1995 Ligeti, György: ”Egy aradmegyei román együttes” (”A folk Romanian band from the Arad region”), in Kodály Elmékkönyv. Zenetudományi Tanulmanyok I, Akadémiai Kiadó, Budapest, 1953. Ligeti, György: ”Népzenekutatás Romániában” (”Research on Romanian Folk Music”), in Új Zenei Szemle, I/3, August 1950, Budapest, pp.18-22. Ross, Alex: The Rest is Noise, Picador, New York, 2007. Steinitz, Richard: “The Innate Melodist“ in György Ligeti’s Cultural Identities (Amy Bauer and Márton Kerékfy eds.), Routledge, Abingdon, Oxon - New York, 2018, pp. 68-69. Ţiplea Temeş, Bianca: ”Where Two Worlds Meet: Ligeti and Romanian Folk Music”, in Studia UBB Musica, Cluj University Press, No. 2/2012, pp. 85- 97. Țiplea Temeș, Bianca: “Ligeti’s Romanian Concerto. From Wax Cylinders to Symphony Orchestra”, in Studia UBB Musica, no.1/2013, Cluj University Press pp. 51-72.
30 György Ligeti: un portrait (a film by Michel Follin, authors: Judit Kele, Michel Follin, Arnaud de Mezamat. CoProduction: Abacaris Film, Artline Films, La Sept Arte, RTBF, Magyar Televízió, Productions du Sablier, Centre Georges Pompidou, 1993.
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Țiplea Temeș, Bianca: “Ligeti and Romanian Folk Music. An Insight from the Paul Sacher Foundation“ in György Ligeti’s Cultural Identities (Amy Bauer and Márton Kerékfy eds.), Routledge, Abingdon, Oxon - New York, 2018, pp.120-138. Varga, Bálint András: György Kurtág; Three Interviews and Ligeti Homages, Rochester: University of Rochester Press, 2009. Voicana, Mircea: George Enescu. Monografie, Ed. Academiei Republicii Socialiste România, Bucureşti, 1971.
326 STUDIA UBB MUSICA, LXIII, 2, 2018 (p. 327 – 334) (RECOMMENDED CITATION)
BOOK REVIEWS
CONSIDERATIONS ABOUT A FUNDAMENTAL BOOK OF ROMANIAN MUSICOLOGY
Written on commission and published in 1997, awarded with the prize for musicology by the Romanian Union of Composers and Musicologists in 1999, this book, entitled Orientări, direcții, curente ale muzicii româ- nești din a doua jumătate a secolului XX [Orientations, Directions, Currents in Late Twentieth Century Romanian Music] (Bucharest: Editura Muzicală) by Irinel Anghel, passed almost unnoticed by the public at the end of the last century. It was only in the first decade of this century that this text started to gradually, albeit firmly reveal its force and pertinence as a necessary musicological conceptual model, even despite the totally absent promotion, group partisanship, or any “maternal” involvement on the part of its author. And the text is gaining even more visibility despite being conceived as a mini-encyclopaedia (see the Table of Contents) or as a quasi-dictionary (see the Index of this edition), both based on a detailed and compelling analytical interpretation, attuned to the realities of the Romanian cultural and compositional landscape. The book's quiet success is largely due to the community of undergraduates, master students, Ph.D. students and many others, and can be measured by the number of citations and by its inclusion as a mandatory title in an impressive number of bibliographies. Moreover, the book has already long become an important source of information and a sough-after bibliographic rarity, which confirms its growing value. In other words, for over two decades, this text has already created its own image and personality, its own cultural and analytical habitat, an ever-growing interested public, and more importantly, has led to a sustained increase in demand, which is a rare, if not almost impossible situation for a book in the niche area of musicology. “One of the fundamental books dedicated to Romanian musicology”, as composer Diana Rotaru characterised it. * * *
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Orientations. Directions. Currents: Deciphering Possible Meanings The first three words in the title of the book are more than a mere reference to one or several themes, theses or contents approached in the text. A first and most visible meaning reveals the title as a first and absolute reading of the entire content, one that incorporates all the meanings of the text in an essentialized form. Orientations. Directions. Currents. And only second comes the clarifying commentary serving as a temporal-geographical marker and a cultural-artistic attribution – in Late Twentieth Century Romanian Music. A second and profound meaning of the first three words refers to the utility of the text as a territory-map that orients the reader through the main directions assumed by the Romanian composers in the second half of the twentieth century. In other words, and here comes the third word of the title – currents, the evolution of musical thinking in postwar Romania is presented as an evolving river, whose constituents – the currents – can be represented as conceptual energies that could be regarded as a pipeline network, a highly branched blood system that nurtures the body of the Romanian musical culture. The conceptual triad of the title is explained in five broad chapters, or, more precisely, in five determinant forms of the thematic field. Thus, a second map of the text is the Table of Contents, which provides a description of the discursive characters as major themes of modern-postmodern Romanian musical culture. In the titles of the chapters, the author lists with lucid accuracy the actants of this cultural performance: I. Muzica națională, de inspirație folclorică [Folk-Inspired National Music], II. Muzica de inspirație bizantină [Byzantine-Inspired Music], the two sources of the Romanian musical culture, followed by III. Balcanismul estetic [The Aesthetic Balkanism], a debatable theme about the measure of our value and substance, IV. Influențe ale muzicii occidentale. Influențe. Estetici compatibile [Influences of Western Music. Influences. Compatible Aesthetics], with compatible as the key word and suggesting the existence of an original conceptual nucleus that manifests itself in the Western European musical thinking only on certain areas of its surface, and V. Contribuții estetice originale ale muzicii românești contemporane [Original Aesthetic Contributions of Romanian Contemporary Music]. Comprehensive and complete. The optimum minimum required to have an image that serves as an adequate representation and a functional tool for the musicological research of the thematic field stated in the title of the book.
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In a general sense, the triad Orientations. Directions. Currents can be understood as an ample response (and equally a report) to the seemingly simple question: is there life (read: possibilities of conceptual evolution) after Enescu? Applied to other temporally and geographically different cultural contexts, it is possible to obtain the picture of the entire European and especially Austro-German 19th century, dominated by the radiation of the Beethovenian thought, conjuring up feelings of nostalgia (Johannes Brahms), re-readings (Richard Wagner), re-writings (Gustav Mahler), ideological re-contextualizations (Alfred Lorenz), but also almost fetishistic canonizations (E. T. A. Hoffmann, Robert Schumann, Adolf Marx, Richard Wagner, Romain Rolland, August Halm a.o.). Beethoven’s case is followed by the no less famous cases of Wagner (in the Austrian-German culture), Dimitri Shostakovich (in the Soviet culture), or Béla Bartók (in the Hungarian culture), three cases of exhausted conceptual potential, even if Wagner, for example, used to present his compositional conception as the artwork of the future, a future that revealed no other than Arnold Schoenberg, champion of atonality, as his direct heir.
On the Generative Role of Enescu's Legacy Or, Irinel Anghel’s book reveals an entirely different picture, evaluating Enescu's thinking precisely through the lens of the conceptual harvest collected by the composers of the two post-Enescian avant-gardes. And, as stated in the text, inheriting Enescu meant neither turning him into a fetish through tributary mimetic attitudes, nor combating him with dismissive claims, as such manifestations were both falsely-artistic and falsely-modernist. Following in Enescu's footsteps meant following not just the letter, but also the spirit, the essence of Enescu’s creative attitude, which was operating not so much at the superficial levels of, for example, the melodic discourse, narrating a theme and reproducing an ethno-centric atmosphere, but rather at a much deeper level, in the development of sound organization, of texture itself. The relevant examples are few, albeit significant. Standing as a model of theoretical and retrospective consideration of George Enescu's music is the monumental monograph Capodopere enesciene [Enescian Masterpieces] (Bucharest: Editura Muzicală, 1984), along with bringing some of Enescu's unknown works back to the concert halls (the 4th and 5th Symphonies), all of them realized by Romanian composer Pascal Bentoiu. In like manner, the theoretical writings of Ștefan Niculescu – Reflecții despre muzică [Reflections on Music] (Bucharest: Editura Muzicală, 1980) and Anatol Vieru – Cartea modurilor [The Book of
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Modes] (Bucharest: Editura Muzicală, 1980) – speak of the development of an affinity for heterophony in particular, and for modalism in general, as methods of composition. Works belonging to composers like Liviu Glodeanu (the opera Zamolxe), Mihai Moldovan (Obârşii - 1971, Cântece străbune - 1971/1972 and Spații și timpuri mioritice -1971/1972), or Myriam Marbé (Ritual pentru setea pământului, 1968), can be regarded as applied forms of a living tradition in full blossom, while containing at the same time Enescu's genome in terms of attitude, method and conceptual originality. But things do not stop just here. If the first three chapters are dedicated to the formulation of a genealogy, the last two are related by the apparent antithesis of the terms... compatible (Chapter IV) and ... original (Chapter V). The meaning of this dialectical sway between compatibility (an analogy of the opening towards the cultural-historical exterior) and originality (in the sense of original, an analogy of a specificity maintained in a relative conservation) reveals itself in the fullest and most authentic way in the phrase Răspunsul estic (the Eastern Response) applied to the East-European schools of composition. What is this all about? In the first place, it is about the position of the artistic elites on the Western side of the Iron Curtain, on the one hand, and on the Eastern side, on the other, in relation to the post-Webernian serialism (Pierre Boulez, Karlheinz Stockhausen, Milton Babbitt, Luigi Nono), institutionalized in the Euro-American space of the late 40s and early 50s as a hegemonic tradition. Even if the atmosphere of the Cold War led to great discrepancies in the contents and organization of the political and military life of the West and East, in terms of cultural existence, the picture was sensibly different. With the serial orientation serving as canonical reference, the Euro-American avant-gardes took a contestatory attitude toward it through personalities like John Cage (aleatoricism, with an important contribution by Witold Lutosławski), Iannis Xenakis (stochastic music), Gyorgy Ligeti (the microtonal technique), Luciano Berio (the polystylistic orientation), as well as the four American minimalists – Steve Reich, Terry Railey, La Monte Young and Philip Glass.
On the Eastern Response and Enescu's Solution of Originality A relevant personality for the understanding of the conceptual attitude adopted by the post-Enescian Romanian composers in relation to the European culture is George Enescu, in his capacity as an immigrant or stateless composer (a Romanian who settled abroad), or as a Romanian composer who, by a twist of fate, was appointed cultural attaché in Western
330 CONSIDERATIONS ABOUT A FUNDAMENTAL BOOK OF ROMANIAN MUSICOLOGY
Europe (with studies in Vienna and later in Paris). Thus, it is important how the composer succeeds in reconciling the Romanian musical substance (of an ethnic rather than academic-scholarly essence) with the European musical realities, a single tradition facing an entire family of traditions canonized over the course of at least two millennia of practice. But what could have turned into a conflict proved to be the transformation of a co-habitation into an extremely fertile empathy on a conceptual, creative level. And, the post- Enescian Romanian avant-gardes maintained this carefully controlled and strange empathy as a constituent of their own creative attitude. In a clear antithesis to the reactive rather than mechanical attitude of the (inter- or multi-national) European avant-gardes towards an institutionalized conceptual reference, the Eastern Response was formulated rather as a calm expectation, though with a strong focus on, and an organic assimilation of the substance and evolutionary specificity of their own cultures. Such was the response of the New Polish School composers – Krzysztof Penderecki, Kazimierz Serocki and Henryk Górecki, of the Soviet composer of German- Hebrew origin Alfred Schnittke, and of the members of the two Romanian avant-gardes – Aurel Stroe, Myriam Marbé, Anatol Vieru, Stefan Niculescu, Tiberiu Olah and Cornel Țăranu, Nicolae Brânduş, Corneliu Cezar, Lucian Meţianu, Liviu Glodeanu, Mihai Moldovan, Corneliu Dan Georgescu, Octavian Nemescu, Doina Rotaru and Ulpiu Vlad. The response of the Polish School came in the form of the sonoristic conception, formulated as a doctrine in 1956 by musicologist Józef Michał Chomiński – a synthesis serving as a common denominator (atonal organization of sound, emphasis on texture and timbre as a form generator) both for total serialism (the doctrinal hegemon at the time) and for the reactive avant-gardes (aleatoricism, stochasticism, microtonality, electronic music etc.). In Soviet music, the emergence of the polystylistic tendencies, theorized and developed in several of Alfred Schnittke’s works, legitimized itself as the heir of Dimitri Shostakovich's thinking (with Symphony No. 15 as its relevant model) and even of Gustav Mahler's polystylistic proto-postmodernism (quotation technique, hybridization, fragmentation, narrativism etc.), as compared to Luciano Berio with his famous Sinfonia, in which the polystylistic conception derives from a simple combination (claustrating, in pot-pourri style) of several stylistic quotations. What in Schnittke’s case is articulated organically as a stylistic dialogue, in Berio’s case appears as a mechanical juxtaposition of several stylistic sequences extracted from their original context, and thus pushed towards an obvious decontextualization. In the case of the Romanian school of composition, what draws attention is the creative use of heterophony, a major characteristic of Enescu's style, understood, however, in a broader and more profound sense, as legitimately belonging within a modernist/avant-gardist type of thinking
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(Ștefan Niculescu, Anatol Vieru, Myriam Marbé) and in a radical conceptual opposition with Pierre Boulez's idea, who derives his heterophony from the equation of serial music. The idea is carried further, enhanced and expanded by concepts such as Aurel Stroe's morpho-genetic one (also occurring in works by Cornel Ţăranu, Costin Cazaban, Myriam Marbé and Octavian Nemescu), or the spectralism cultivated already in the 1960s by Corneliu Cezar and Octavian Nemescu, Aurel Stroe, Costin Cazaban, Horațiu Rădulescu, Iancu Dumitrescu and Ana-Maria Avram, in strong opposition to the tardy claim of precedence made by the IRCAM spectralists Gérard Grisey, Tristan Murail and Jean-Claude Risset, members of the Itinéraire ensemble, founded as late as in 1973. In both cases – of heterophony and spectral music –, the Romanian composers present themselves as followers of a cultural genealogy, basing their searches rather on the exploration of some deep-seated contents such as the acoustic and, especially, the archetypal one, than on scholarly- technical deductions as in the case of the Western serialists or spectralists.
On the Concept of Archetype in the Music of the Romanian School of Composition As a true culmination of Irinel Anghel's book and a corollary of all of her powerful and nuanced demonstrations, stands the role played by the concept of archetype in the Romanian avant-garde thinking. It is a concept that serves as a universal correlative, a value filter and revealer, as well as a determining factor in the choice of themes, in the invention of techniques and in the formulation of compositional rules. And the author of the book does not use the archetype to build her narrative effectively, nor can she be suspected of directing the entire text in strict dependence on the fertile moment in which she will bring to light the supreme argument of archetypality. The reading of the book only confirms the narrator’s equidistance and purely objective interpretation of events, beyond any distortions that would betray preferential attitudes or a counterproductive subjectivism. In George Enescu's music, the archetypal argument is present primarily in the traditional reference to the opera Oedipe, a theme of major interest in the early decades of the twentieth century, which is also present in Igor Stravinski’s oratorio Oedipus Rex, but also as a conceptual foundation in Sigmund Freud’s psychoanalytic texts. In fact, the approach of the archetype reveals a tendency to attain a pancultural level of the artistic thinking. Or, already in the titles of the fifth and last chapters of the book – Contribuții estetice originale ale muzicii românești contemporane/5. Muzica arhetipală [Original Aesthetic Contributions of Contemporary Romanian Music/5. Archetypal Music] – the preoccupation for the purely musical formulation of the
332 CONSIDERATIONS ABOUT A FUNDAMENTAL BOOK OF ROMANIAN MUSICOLOGY
concept of archetype presents itself as a determining factor of a fundamental conceptual and aesthetic value. As Irinel Anghel shows, the theoretical writings of composer Corneliu Dan Georgescu represent an important hermeneutical project serving as doctrine precisely by virtue of the idea that “besides the specific elements of a particular language, music (whether folk or classical) also presents a series of commonalities (in different regions and epochs), whose explanation cannot be reduced to the hypothesis of influences or loans, imposing instead that of polygenesis, motivated by common, general human factors” (in: Corneliu Dan Georgescu, Preliminarii la o posibilă teorie a arhetipurilor în muzică [Preliminaries to a Possible Theory of Archetypes in Music], Studii de muzicologie, vol. XVII, 1983, p. 136). Also of particular interest and of importance for the narrative evolution of the text are the two systematizations of the archetypal typologies elaborated by Corneliu Dan Georgescu and Octavian Nemescu. The multitude of archetypal approaches presented by the author in a spectacular thematic panoply confirms and, at the same time, affirms the consistency of this conceptual evolutionary option of the Romanian school of composition: Aurel Stroe – The archetype of the Ladder, Adrian Iorgulescu – The concision of expression. The metaphysical approach, Ștefan Niculescu – The Ison archetype. The heterophonic approach, Corneliu Dan Georgescu – The Major-Minor archetype. The timelessness of perception. The essentialized minimalism, Iancu Dumitrescu – The archetype of Natural Resonance. The recovery of timbral archaicity, Doina Rotaru – The Glissando archetype. Folklore decantation and Octavian Nemescu, The Total archetype. The logical conclusion of the entire narrative of the book, a consequence and a continuation of the archetypal approach, occurs in the last sub-chapter – 7. Imaginary music – a fertile thematic proposal whereby Octavian Nemescu virtually provides a conceptual opening towards new possibilities of representation of musical thinking.
* * *
This book, Orientări, Direcții, Curente ale muzicii românești din a doua jumătate a secolului XX [Orientations, Directions, Currents in Late Twentieth Century Romanian Music] by Irinel Anghel, has won its well- deserved place in Romanian musicology through a blend of qualities that make it equally important and necessary. A guide-book, a dictionary-book, a (mini) encyclopaedia-book, an analytical model book, in which both the historical and the systematic approaches relate in a fertile way, absorbing into the narrative flow of the text and binding together, in an organic whole,
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completely different facts, names and titles, creating a direct communication between concepts and ideas which, though temporally distant, are univocally oriented towards a common evolutionary direction. The text of the book relies on a strong argumentative apparatus – quotations, tables, musical examples – which Irinel Anghel operates with an admirable control of the sufficient necessity, while emphasizing the ideational and thematic complexity, as well as the resoluteness and indisputable originality of the Romanian school of composition. And after more than two decades from its writing, this great small book establishes itself as a faithful, analytical mirror of the historical reality it describes. Perhaps even more, it can claim its right to contain and represent it in the proper sense of the word.
OLEG GARAZ (May 2018)
Translated from Romanian by Marcella Magda
334 STUDIA UBB MUSICA, LXIII, 2, 2018 (p. 335 – 339) (RECOMMENDED CITATION)
BOOK REVIEWS
“THE MUSIC IN THE SILENT SOUND”: George Balint, Privirea estetică: încercare în contemplarea muzicii [The Aesthetic Gaze: Attempt at Contemplating Music], Bucharest: Editura Muzicală, 2018, 177 p., ISBN 978-973-42-1029-9
Through an inspired and extremely concise title, professor George Balint brings together the actors of the critical process, watch- ing them from the back of the con- cert hall: the critic (the aesthetic gaze), the audience (attempt at contemplating) and the performer (the music). Through these essays of musical exegesis and hermeneu- tics, the author substitutes himself for each of them: as a professor and editor-in-chief of the Actualitatea muzicală journal of the Composers’ Union – for the critic; as a conductor and composer – for the performer; and, finally, as a publicist and essay- ist – for the audience. I must first point out that the idea of the musical visual is not a new one; for example, the concept of musica universalis – “the music of the spheres” comes from Antiquity, from Pythagoras to Boethius, then to Kepler, etc. Nevertheless, George Balint's investigation into this area is welcomed, even if the author modestly describes it as an adage in essay format, which in certain places resembles a treatise (p. 5), while the book is, according to him, a narrative text, at times meditative (focusing on the imaginary), at others active (tending towards objectivation).
335 CRISTINA ȘUTEU
The book counts 177 pages and is structured in two parts. At the risk of launching a hermetic text, I will review the titles and subtitles of the book. Hermeticism is a sign that the author has kept himself within the generous boundaries of essayistic exoticism, but also that – as the old saying goes – “strong essences are kept in small bottles”, and thus, the book – without claiming to be an extensive treatise on musical aesthetics – proposes some grana for tomorrow's harvest. Perhaps my readers will convince themselves of this after reading one more book on musical aesthetics. The first part of the book, entitled “Specificul privirii estetice” [The Specific Nature of the Aesthetic Gaze], has ten chapters, preceded by an introduction that includes an explanatory note on the term “aesthetics”, as well as a commentary note on Kant’s Critique of the Power of Judgement. After understanding the character types (the performative and the contemplative), the conditions of the aesthetic gaze (the emergence of the interest, imagining the object that must be enveloped by the gaze, mentally contouring the image using the circle) and the types of aesthetic gaze (descriptive, symbolic) (Ch. I), the reader is engaged in the process of contemplation (the reason for revealing the centre, the expression of the interval, the sense of the interval: remoteness, closeness, the trajectory of the aesthetic gaze: direction and evolution) (Ch. II) and in the dialogue of the aesthetic gaze (through initiating and edifying questions and their adequate answers) (Ch. III), attaining four levels of sound perception (Ch. IV – see the analysis below). Then, through the investigation of musical aesthetics (Ch. V), the reader is led to understand the stages of the generic man (natural – oneiric – cultural – wise – spiritual: Ch. VI), elaborated upon in the context of a duality of culture (between subject and object: Ch. VII), to then learn about the orientation of the aesthetic gaze (with the characters of orientation of the aesthetic gaze: ordinary and elevated and the layout of the musical object), which enables him to make an aesthetic commentary on Ravel’s “Boléro”: Ch. VIII). Finally, through cadence and contrast as basic aspects in the interpretation of musical form (Ch. IX), the reader arrives at directions, knots and horizons in the expression of the musical work (Ch. X - see the analysis below). The second part of the book, entitled “Trei aspecte vesele ale esteticii de contrast în muzică” [Three Joyful Aspects of Contrast Aesthetics in Music], begins with a suggestive motto uttered by Frosch, the character of the third act of the operetta Die Fledermaus [The Bat] by Johann Strauss: “Jolly prison this, sir!” This part is limited to the elaboration of three characters of musical aesthetics: “the Ludic” (Ch. I), “the Comic” (Ch. II) and “the Carnivalesque” (Ch. III). The book ends with a concluding synthesis in which the author provides a table of highlights and features of the aesthetic categories subsumed under ‘joy’.
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A detailed analysis of the book would require a proper study. In this review, however, I will confine my remarks to a few things that have stirred my curiosity and for which it deserves attention. (1) The author analyses and classifies the ITHD acronym characteristic of the musical sound (I – intensity, T – timbre, H – harmonic pitch, D – duration), using pairs of extremes, based on the Hegelian scheme of thesis/antithesis/synthesis. For example, in Chapter III, subchapter B, dealing with possible answers to the interrogation of the aesthetic gaze, for a physical perspective of the aesthetic gaze the author uses antagonistic terms such as:
inaudible/audible or opaque/resonant (for intensity [I]), dense/rarefied or compact/aerated (for timbrality [T]), thick/thin or high/low (for pitch [H]), continuous/discontinuous (for duration [D]).
The same ITHD coordinates are analysed from three other perspectives: imaginative, technical and characterial (pp. 31-35). For the ITHD tetrad, the author then characterizes the beautiful/ugly dyad as follows: I – shouted/ whispered; T – noisy/melodious; H – dark/bright; D – temporal/spatial. For each of these terms, the author provides multiple lexical correspondences. (2) In terms of perception, the author distinguishes and differentiates between four types of relationship with the sound: hearing, impression, audition, listening, while objectually regarding the sound as – ordinary, musical, structured and sublimated, which creates a “sound image” at the level of the body, soul, mind and consciousness (see Chapter IV, p. 39 and following). From a metaphysical standpoint, the author distinguishes a fifth level of contemplating the sound: based on sensory hearing (sound), emotional impression (mood), intellectual hearing (structure/report) and listening to consciousness (sense/interval). Considering it as a stage of perception through contemplation, the author qualifies it by the attribute spiritual (p. 41). This aspect thus outlines the title of the book: Privirea estetică: încercare în contemplarea muzicii [The Aesthetic Gaze: Attempt at Contemplating Music]. (3) The textual structure includes an exemplifying comment: an aesthetic gaze on Ravel’s Boléro, along with other comments whereby George Balint applies his theoretical framework to certain praxeological points of view. (4) To involve as many readers as possible in his analytical journey, the author calls upon major figures of the Greek and Christian pantheon such as Theos, Thanatos, Logos, Eros and Chronos (see Ch. X, p. 83 and following).
337 CRISTINA ȘUTEU
Depending on Eros, Logos and Chronos, he derives the artistic-interpretative functions of experience, conception and fulfilment, generically proper to the listener, composer and instrument player, and thus defines three landmarks of the aesthetics of the musical object: the aesthetics of melodicity through filters of reflection (regarding the sense) in the line of eros; the aesthetics of conception through filters of analysis (regarding form) in the line of logos; and the aesthetics of the face, through filters of description (regarding the face) in the line of chronos (p. 89). (5) Grounded in the realm of the philosophy of experimental music, George Balint binds himself to borrow, adapt or create terms that the Romanian dictionary does not use – or, in any case, to which musical dictionaries do not ascribe meanings that are specific to the musical field: arime (absence of rhymes), clipúri (ideas appear and disappear instantly, in infinitesimal sizes which the author calls clipúri – p. 47), timbrometrii (distinguishing a colour in relation with the instrumental metrics of the musical movement – p. 74), dezinențe (orientation towards the moment of cadence – p. 78), jocularitate (imponderable motricity – p. 160) etc. (6) In addition, the book also approaches other fields related to musical aesthetics. Thus, the reader can learn about the three historic “revolutions” – Cognitive, Agricultural and Scientific (p. 9), or about the eight types of temperament – passionate, choleric, sentimental, nervous, phlegmatic, sanguineous, apathetic and amorphous), about the famous Trickster (p. 76), or about the differences between “contrast aesthetics” and the homogeneity of the environment (p. 97), between “game” and “play” (p. 104) etc. (7) The images are also worth noting. From the musical examples from Ravel’s Bolero (p. 72, 75), from Mozart’s Piano Sonata No. 16 in C major K. 545 (p. 112), and from George Balint’s Ludic Scenes for ‘Trio Contrasts’ (flute, percussion, piano) and orchestra (p. 113), to John Cage's “definitions” of Musicircus (p. 156), or to the text diagrams referring to the constitutiveness of the generic man (p. 51), or to those directions, knots and horizons in the expression of the musical work (p.88), then to the registers of the joyful play and its degenerative condensations (p.175), but also to the exhaustive synthetic picture entitled “Repere și trăsături ale categoriilor estetice subsumate veseliei” [Highlights and Features of the Aesthetic Categories Subsumed under ‘Joy’] (p.164), everything it marked by an extraordinary concision. (8) Last but not least, it is worth noting that George Balint is familiar with musicologists, theorists, music historians, composers and conductors such as Lully, Pergolesi, Gluck, Rossini, Donizetti, Berlioz, Verdi, Offenbach, Strauss, Saint-Saëns, Puccini, Albéniz, Schenker, Ravel, Ansermet, Tippett, Shostakovich, Messiaen, Cage, Britten, Xenakis, Nono, Berio, Boulez, Stockhausen, Ashley, Schnittke, Arvo Pärt, T. Riley, La Monte Young, Steve
338 THE MUSIC IN THE SILENT SOUND
Reich, Ph. Glass, Corigliano, Ferneyhough, J. Rea, Finnissy, J. Adams, Trojahn, Rihm, von Bose, D. Mawer, and, from Romania, with Ștefan Niculescu, Alexandru Leahu, Sorin Lerescu, Liviu Dănceanu, Dan Dediu, Irinel Anghel, Ștefan Firca, Ioana Margita etc. He also quotes authors (philosophers, historians, literati, aestheticians etc.) such as Sloterdijk, Moutsopoulos, Liiceanu, V. Morar, Yuval Noah Harari, E. Dissanayake, Descartes, Spinoza, Leibniz, Baumgarten, Hegel, Wolff, Kant, Schopenhauer, Schlegel, J.P. Richter, Cassirer, Bergson, Croce, Hartmann, Ralea, Noica, Foucault, Eco, Kristeva, Jean-Marc Defays, Tudor Vianu, Mihail Bahtin, Anatol Gavrilov, George Lakoff, Jung, Freud, Hans Eysenck, G. Heymans, E. D. Wiersma, Rene Le Senne, Gaston Berger, Kurt Koffka, Rabelais, Carlo Goldoni, Samuel Beckett, Paul Valéry, Johan Huizinga, Marcel Duchamp, I.L. Caragiale, Arkon Daraul, Louis de Funès. He also mentions ancient sources such as those of Hesiod, Sophocles, Aristophanes, Hippocrates, Galen, Plato, or Aristotle.
***
Nil peccant oculi si animus oculis imperat – “The eyes commit no sin if the mind controls the eyes”, said Publilius Syrus in Sententiae, 415. I believe that behind the contemplation of music, there are in George Balint's case many years of hard work, which justifiably allows the “mind to control the eyes.” And it could be no other way, for, according to Schopenhauer, “Music is an unconscious exercise in metaphysics in which the mind does not know it is philosophizing”. And one more thing: according to Nietzsche, “only as an aesthetic phenomenon can existence and the world be justified.” Therefore, dear reader, do not forget to prepare your aesthetic gaze to distinguish “the music in the silent sound”, by reading George Balint'a book.
CRISTINA ȘUTEU
Translated from Romanian by Marcella Gabriela MAGDA
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STUDIA UBB MUSICA, LXIII, 2, 2018 (p. 341 – 345) (RECOMMENDED CITATION)
CONCERT CHRONICLES
THE VALKYRIE BY RICHARD WAGNER, IN CONCERT. GABRIEL BEBEȘELEA AND THE “TRANSILVANIA” STATE PHILHARMONIC ORCHESTRA DRESS REHEARSAL WITH AUDIENCE AND THE CLOSING CONCERT OF THE “CLUJ MUSICAL AUTUMN” INTERNATIONAL FESTIVAL (OCTOBER 25-26, 2018)
Wagner’s opera in concert draws the attention of Cluj audiences for the second time; it is definitely an accomplishment for symphonic and vocal-symphonic music lovers to make it through four hours of opera music, without intermission; nevertheless, just as last year (2017), the fully booked evening performance has encouraged organizers to widely open the gates of the dress rehearsal. This interest followed by well-deserved success determines a few questions: 1. How can such elitist music fascinate mostly classically oriented audiences? 2. What does Gabriel Bebeșelea have that other valuable conductors do not? 3. What arguments can there be for an opera in concert? We will try to answer them in the present article focusing on the young conductor Gabriel Bebeșelea and his Wagner project – the four opera cycle Der Ring des Nibelungen (The ring of the Nibelung), initiated in 2017 in cooperation with the “Transilvania” State Philharmonic. In just a few years’ time, this magician of the baton has forever won the hearts of the Cluj audiences with his grand and innovative projects; among them, we mention only the most recent ones: Wagner – Das Rheingold (The Rheingold) (presented on October 27/28, 2017, at the closing of the Cluj Musical Autumn), Gesualdo – Book VI of Madrigals (February 23, 2018), as a first audition, Kalevi Aho – Concerto for flute and orchestra (May 13, 2018), Britten – War Requiem (closing concert of the season in Cluj) and, in the new season, Wagner – Die Walküre (The Valkyrie), (October 25/26, 2018, in the concert closing the Cluj Musical Autumn). Very well educated, Gabriel Bebeșelea is a pioneer who deliberately chooses the most difficult scores and studies them thoroughly in order to reveal the most subtle details of the composer’s intentions. He knows how to request the most distinctive tempos and nuances in order to obtain a powerful and subtle performance.
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The first question is answered by the main character of the project himself, conductor Gabriel Bebeșelea: ... “the tetralogy raises great dilemmas over the human condition. Hidden beneath the mythical story, there are eternal problems of society and humanity... Wagner’s works are hypnotic and it is, therefore, natural for music history to be divided into ‘before’ and ‘after’ the tetralogy.” The conductor is talented, knowledgeable, courageous as well as confident and trusting of his team. Approaching Wagner’s tetralogy in concert – for the first time in Cluj – is an act of bravery and, in one year’s time, the first two operas have been performed, The Rhinegold (2017) and The Valkyrie (2018). Wagner’s score demands for blasting sounds in the culminating moments, while the dramatic tension is amplified by the special orchestration indicated by the composer, with the tubas bearing his name. We, therefore, answered the second question. In order to imagine the answer to our last interrogation we need to understand that, for important orchestras, having a diversified repertoire is a constant challenge, together with attracting knowledgeable, selective audience, open to new experiences. “The ‘Transilvania’ State Philharmonic is a continually growing ensemble, wishing to surpass its limitations, which can only be offered such challenges”, says Gabriel Bebeșelea. According to his stage vision, the musical impact is amplified by the visual one, hence the alternation of moments of complete darkness, where only the orchestra lights pierce through, in contrast with the stage drowning in light or in dreamlike colours. Moreover, the moments of tension, with the most intense sonority, in the beginning and in the end of Wagner’s opera, the lightning storm sound effects were apocalyptically amplified by light flashes, culminating with an immense circle of fire, embracing the entire stage. All of these have visually enhanced the dramatic effect, successfully replacing stage settings. This is the way to present a theatrical work in concert! Furthermore, the desire for a complete performance has introduced another essential character, usually concealed from the eyes of opera audiences: the orchestra.
On the message of Wagner’s opera The subject, just as that of his previous operas, is inspired by heroes of Norse mythology and reflects Wagner’s tempestuous personal life: the perpetual fight of the prodigy against the rapacious “gods” thirsty for wealth and power, expressed by the obsession for the “Rhinegold” and for the “Ring of the Nibelung”. Adding to all that, the sentimental plot is inspired by the composer’s personal life. Wagner spent his life haunted by his family’s secrets regarding his father’s identity and his mother’s biography, yet an unsolved mystery; these are the uncertainties faced by most main characters in Wagner’s operas. Another influence is the literary one: the tragic figure of byronic Manfred fascinated Wagner too: Siegmund and Sieglinde (a theme related to Æschylus’ Oresteia, as well as with the carol of the Sun and Moon from Romanian folklore)
342 THE VALKYRIE BY RICHARD WAGNER, IN CONCERT. GABRIEL BEBEȘELEA...
and Wotan’s bastard twins will be convicted by the gods to pay with their lives for their desperate love. The salvation of Sieglinde (who will give birth to Siegfried, the hero of the following part of the tetralogy) by Brünnhilde (Wotan’s illegitimate daughter) will infuriate the god, who will fiercely punish his daughter for having rebelled by banishing her from the Valhalla and condemning her to be loved by a mortal. The plot of the Valkyrie ends with the image of an immense circle of fire requested by Brünnhilde – realized through an impressive light play which surrounded the stage in a spectacular way – meant to guard the sleep cast upon her by her ruthless father and which only a brave mortal would dare surpass.
On the conductor, the initiator of the project Gabriel Bebeșelea has a remarkable history, situating him among the most important conductors of his generation: winner of conducting competitions “Lovro von Matačić” – Zagreb (2015) and “Jeunesses Musicales”(2010), semi-finalist at “Donatella Flick” – London Symphony Orchestra (2014) and “Gustav Mahler” – Bamberger Symphoniker (2016), he collaborates with renowned orchestras in London, Berlin, Stuttgart, Belfast, Moscow, Zagreb and Budapest. In 2011 he won a scholarship at the Royal Concertgebouw Orchestra in Amsterdam and he worked with famous conductors such as Mariss Jansons, Bernard Haitink, Herbert Blomstedt, Cristoph von Dohnányi, Philippe Herreweghe, David Zinman and Eliahu Inbal. That same year he was named Principal Conductor at the Opera House in Iași, the youngest in Romanian history, and he received the title of “Best Conductor” (2014) at the Romanian National Opera Houses Awards. He is also Principal Conductor at the “Transilvania” State Philharmonic in Cluj-Napoca and he is involved in the reconstruction of George Enescu’s manuscript scores.
The soloists Corby Welch, a prestigious tenor of the Düsseldorf Opera House, played the part of Siegmund. A dynamic presence, with a warm timbre, the Minneapolis born singer has a vast repertoire, having collaborated with the great opera houses in Hamburg, Essen, Lisbon, Amsterdam, Modena, Ferara while participating in festivals in Schwetzingen or Aix-en-Provence. Ruxandra Donose, in the role of Sieglinde, Siegmund’s twin sister, is a famous mezzo-soprano, present on the stages of the most prodigious cultural centres of the world, among which we mention London, New York, Paris, Vienna, Berlin, Madrid, Moscow, Los Angeles, San Francisco, Dijon, Barcelona, Copenhagen and Tokyo. She impresses by her high quality voice, as well as by the candor of her performance.
343 ECATERINA BANCIU
Heike Wessels, in the role of Brünnhilde, Wotan’s favourite daughter, has the technique and timbrality allowing her to equally approach the repertoire for mezzo-soprano and for dramatic soprano. Having studied in Essen and Strasbourg, she was a soloist in Wuppertaler, Braunschweig and, since 2008, in Mannheim. She proved to be a charming and dynamic presence, receptive of the mortals’ pains. The “Gheorghe Dima” Music Academy alumni sang side by side with the internationally acclaimed soloists: Alin Anca, as Hunding, Sieglinde’s husband, is a baritone soloist in Berlin and, since 2013, in Hamburg; Andrei Yvan, as Wotan, the god of Valhalla, bass-baritone, is a soloist in theatres in Germany, Switzerland and, recently, Tel Aviv and Iași; Orsolya Veress – Fricka, Wotan’s wife, a mezzo-soprano, is a soloist at the Hungarian Opera in Cluj-Napoca. Her strong and firm voice impressed in the role of protector of marriage. She will determine Wotan to change his attitude from protector of the twins’ love to punisher and pleads for the death punishment. The Ride of the Valkyries, where Wotan’s daughters arrive, with a strong emotional impact, is one of the most famous scenes of the tetralogy. The composer imagined the moment by using the cori spezzati procedure, the eight singers being placed in the two lateral balconies, on both sides of the stage. The effect was, as foreseen, grand and overwhelming. The protagonists were six appreciated soloists from the two opera houses in Cluj and two guests from the music universities in Bucharest and Oradea:
The Valkyries, Wotan’s daughters: Oana Trîmbițaș (Helmwige) - soprano Daniela Păcurar (Gerhilde) - soprano Yolanda Covacinschi (Ortlinde) - soprano Melinda Duffner (Waltraute ) – mezzo-soprano Valentina Pușcaș (Siegrune) – mezzo-soprano (Music University in Oradea) Antonia Cosmina Stancu (Rossweisse) – mezzo-soprano (National University of Music in Bucharest) Laura Essig (Schwertleite) - alto Andreea Iftimescu (Grimgerde) - alto
The preparation of such a grand project involved intense musical study with experienced pianists such as Adina Mureșan and Alexandru Lazăr as well as the cooperation with a remarkable young conductor, Cristian Spătaru. We also have to mention the name of the lighting specialist, Attila Almási, who masterfully staged the light play. Furthermore, great merit in revealing the message of the Valkyrie is attributed to translators Marius Tabacu, Roxana Stoenescu and Oana Andreica, also responsible for the high quality text in the concert leaflet.
344 THE VALKYRIE BY RICHARD WAGNER, IN CONCERT. GABRIEL BEBEȘELEA...
Few words can truly express the proper value of the exhausting effort put in, or the abnegation proven by artists confronting the score, but it all resulted in a magnificent performance, worthy of all the great stages of the world. “Following this experience, one inevitably becomes a better musician, more refined and with more attention to detail”, says Gabriel Bebeșelea. On the whole, it may well be argued that congratulations and acknowledgments are definitely in order for the entire staff, conductors, soloists, orchestra, technical crew, along with the cultivated and appreciative audience.
ECATERINA BANCIU
Translated from Romanian by Roxana Huza
345
CONTRIBUTORS
CONTRIBUTORS
Tamás ALTORJAY is an opera singer of the National Theatre of Szeged, since 1989, and singing teacher for futurity singers at special music secondary school, and music faculty as well, from 2002. Till now he has sang more than 70 operatic roles all over in Hungary, and all over in Europe on tours. From his students 15 continued their studies at music faculty of different Universities and four of them won first prise on singing competitions. Five of them finished their studies with diploma on the music faculty. His mean research topic is comparing the effect of different warm-up tasks for the classical trained singing voice. Till now he has held 19 presentations on different congresses and has 16 publications.
Gábor ÁDÁM, MD was born in Szeged, Hungary and is a graduate of University of Szeged. Engaged his postgraduate training in Hospital of Deszk, Department of Pulmonology. He is now a specialty registrar in the field pulmonology. He is the chief of junior doctors in Deszk. He gained experience in the full spectrum of pulmonary medicine in both in-patient and out-patient settings. He participates in the teaching of medical (hungarian and foreign groups) and physiotherapist students.
Annamaria BALLA is a practitioner clinical psychologist and university lecturer at the Emanuel University of Oradea. Her field of research covers prevention mental and emotional illness to children and teenagers, and develop emotional resilience. Currently, she was interested in knowing emotional and well- being mechanism to sick and hospitalized children.
Ecaterina BANCIU, Ph.D. Professor, teaches Music History and Musical Aesthetics at the “Gheorghe Dima” Academy of Music in Cluj-Napoca. Being herself an alumna of the above mentioned institution, she is constantly involved in musicological research. She has published numerous articles, studies and five volumes: Arhetipuri estetice ale relaţiei ethos-affectus în istoria muzicii (Aesthetic Archetypes of the Relationship between Ethos and Affectus in Music History) (2006), Itinerarii muzicologie: Mozart, Puccini, Toduţă, Terényi (Musicological Itineraries: Mozart, Puccini, Toduţă, Terényi) (2009) Istoria muzicii (The History of Music, Module of study for the Distance Learning Department of the “Gheorghe Dima” Academy of Music), Musical Literature of the 20th Century - Course Support, Year I, Master Lever (2016), and Music Rethoric. Support material, Co-author, Gabriel Banciu. Her research spans over a variety of subjects: Mozart themes, romantic and late romantic themes (Schumann, Tchaikovsky, Richard Strauss, Mahler) and also themes from Romanian contemporary music and musical archetypes (Toduță, Jarda, Herman, Țăranu, Terényi, Adrian Pop). Some of these works were published in Romanian and English and some were presented in French at the Conservatory Jean Philippe Rameau from Dijon, in an Erasmus project (2011). In 2012 she was elected president of the “Sigismund Toduță” Foundation.
347 CONTRIBUTORS
Oana Mihaela BĂLAN, Univ. Lecturer Professor, PhD. is teaching Artistic Management at the Academy of Music „Gh. Dima”. Her main research interest is focused on creative industries, particularly in music entrepreneurship, copyright protections, branding, artistic marketing and projects cycle management. She published books and articles about „self-management for artists”, „innovative communication strategies in arts”, „e-management” and „cultural production”.
Alexandra BELIBOU is a Assist. Prof., PhD student at Transilvania University Brașov preparing a thesis about musical representations of David’s Psalms in the history. At the Music Faculty she teaches Computer and Music, Music Theory, Folklore, Academic writing. Her passion for religious music started from adolescence, and it grew while singing in choirs and conducting vocal groups. Alexandra is now the conductor of Trio Vocal Rhapsodia, a group that has a vast repertoire of orthodox music, Romanian folk music, and jazz arrangements. As a graduate from Music Faculty – Transylvania University Brașov, master graduate from the same faculty and master graduate from Theology Faculty – Lucian Blaga University Sibiu, the theology- music dichotomy is the principle that conducts her activities.
Adrian BORZA, Ph.D. (1967–) has been recognized as a versatile musician, dedicated to writing vocal, instrumental and electroacoustic music, to music software development, to audio post-production, to artistic research, and to music teaching. His recent compositions and researches have been focused on the interaction between performer and computer. His music has been performed in festivals, concerts and broadcasted across Europe, Asia, North America, Australia, South America and New Zeeland, such as the Ai-maako Festival (Santiago de Chile, 2007), Zeppelin Festival (Barcelona, 2008), La Nuit Bleue Festival (Besançon, 2008), JSEM/MSL Electroacoustic Festival (Nagoya, 2009), Musica Viva Festival (Lisbon, 2009), ISCM World New Music Days (Sydney, 2010), International Computer Music Conference (New York City, 2010), SIMN International New Music Week (Bucharest, 2014), Art & Science Days (Bourges, 2015), CAMP Festival (Stuttgart, 2015), DaDa > 100: Life/ Art/ Museum, Dadaism and Performing Arts (Cluj-Napoca, 2016), Cluj Modern Festival (Cluj-Napoca, 2017), Opera Omnia Conference (Iași, 2018) and more. He has received commissions from renowned soloists, ensembles and institutions, including Swedish Concert Institute and Magnus Andersson (Chaconne for guitar solo, 1999), Jörgen Pettersson (akSax for saxophone quartet) and Daniel Kientzy & Reina Portuondo (Fragile for saxophones, viola, and electronics, 2008). He is Artistic Director of the Elektro Arts, a Digital Arts International Festival. He joined the teaching staff at the Gheorghe Dima Academy of Music in Cluj-Napoca (1992), where he has taught Musical Analysis, Electronic Music, and Musical Stylistics. He initiated the introduction of the Interactive Music Systems course into the Theoretical Faculty’s curriculum (2008), a premiere in Romania. His music has been recorded on CD by Hungaroton Classic Hungary, Nova Musica France, and Romanian Radio Broadcasting Society. His music scores, books and studies have been published by Editura Muzicală Bucharest, Babeș-Bolyai Studia Universitatis, Lucian Badian Editions Ottawa, the Music Faculty in Brașov and MediaMusica in Cluj-Napoca. He was awarded a Ph.D. in Music (2004), the George Enescu Prize of the Romanian Academy (2013) and the Prize of the Romanian Association of Composers and Musicologist (2012): If for Oboe and Interactive Computer (2011).
348 CONTRIBUTORS
Henrietta CIOBA (born April 13th 1994) is a student at the Psychology Department of the Psychology and Educational Sciences Faculty at “Babeș-Bolyai University” in Cluj Napoca. She started her musical studies in 2002, as a self- taught musician; between 2007-2012 she finished at the Targu Mures Art School majoring in electric organ. Afterwards she graduated from the arts specialized high school of Targu Mures - “Marosvásárhelyi Művészeti Líceum” with a degree in folk- singing. In 2016 she acquired a degree in Musical Pedagogy at “Babeș-Bolyai University” within the Faculty of Reformed Theology and Musical Pedagogy. She started her musical career in the entertainment industry in 2007, since then she is an active musician with her solo project as well as a singer of various bands. Her research in music began in 2013 and she is still very interested to progress in this particular field.
Petruța-Maria COROIU is a Professor Dr. habil. at Transilvania University of Braşov, where she teaches a range of courses in applied musicology and analysis from second year to MA level. Her primary research interest is the area of traditional and modern archetypes of musical analysis and she has published in the areas of musical form analysis, aesthetics and semantics, modern analysis and cultural studies. Among his books are: Tehnici de analiză muzicală (Musical analysis techniques), Cronica ideilor contemporane (Chronicle of contemporary ideas), Tratat de forme muzicale (Musical forms), Universul componistic al lui Aurel Stroe (The universe of composer Aurel Stroe). She is graduated in musicology, musical composition,piano performance.
Stela DRĂGULIN, PhD, Univ. Prof. habil. “Mrs. Stela Dragulin is an exceptional piano teacher. She has already achieved miraculous results with a few young pianists. I admire her not only for developing the technical and musical abilities of her students, but also for bringing out the personality of every individual.” (Sergiu Comissiona - Music Director Emeritus, Vancouver Symphony Orchestra; Conductor Laureate, Baltimore Symphony Orchestra; Principal Guest Conductor, Jerusalem Symphony Orchestra). Praised in countless publications as “an exceptional professor, with pedagogical gift and professional mastery” Dr. Stela Drăgulin created the famous school of piano in Brasov. Dr. Drăgulin's success in pedagogy is illustrated by her students’ prodigious careers: hundreds of concerts and recitals in Romania and abroad as soloists with some of the best orchestras in Austria, Belgium, Bulgaria, Germany, Italy, Japan, Romania, Yugoslavia, Indonesia and the USA, as well as 54 prizes at prestigious national and international contests. The Romanian Television produced two movies - "And Yet...Mozart" and "The Long Way to Perfection" - in order to better present Dr. Drăgulin’s professional activity and success. Those documentaries were broadcast in over 30 countries. As a reward for her performances, Stela Drăgulin is the conferee of an impressive number of distinctions and awards, of which the most important is the Medal “Merit of Education” in the rank of Great Officer, granted by the President of Romania in 2004. Other prizes include the "Honored Professor" award of the Ministry of Education and Research in 1985, the "Astra" prize for pedagogy in 1987, the prize of the Romanian Broadcast Corporation for great contribution to the development of the Romanian piano playing in 2000, She is also a Correspondent
349 CONTRIBUTORS
Member of the American-Romanian Academy for Arts and Sciences, ARA since 2002, and in 2010 she has been elected as president of the Romanian branch of this organization. In 2010 Dr. Drăgulin received The American Romanian Academy Award for Art and Science. Due to her exceptional international results, she was invited for a private audience by Pontiff John Paul the Second in 1990. Prof. Stela Drăgulin, PhD, studied piano with Prof. Nina Panieva - Sebessy, PhD. and she received her doctoral degree in musicology from Music Academy of Cluj Napoca in 1997. She is Prof. habil. PhD., starting with 2013, as a result of having earned the University Habilitation Degree Attestation, whereby she was approved as PhD coordinator.
Oleg GARAZ (b. January 5, 1964, Soroca, Republic of Moldova) - musicologist. Education and training: Stefan Neaga Music College (Chisinau), theoretical department (1979-1983), Gavriil Musicescu Conservatoire (Chisinau), Theoretical Faculty, Department of Musicology (1987-1990), Gheorghe Dima Music Academy (Cluj-Napoca), Theoretical Faculty, Department of Musicology (1990- 1995 /1997), Advanced Studies, Department of Musicology (1997-1998). Scientific doctoral studies completed at the National University of Music Bucharest, with a thesis entitled The European Musical Canon in Postmodernity, defended in 2013. Published books: Contraideologii muzicale [Musical Counter-Ideologies] (2003), Poetica muzicală în convorbiri [Musical Poetics in Conversations] (2003), Muziconautice [Musicalnauticals] (2007), Territoria (2007), Muzica şi sensul sincretic al nostalgiei [Music and the Syncretic Sense of Nostalgia] (2011), Exerciţii de muzicologie [Musicological Exercises] (2014), Canonul muzicii europene [The Canon of European Music] (2015), Genurile muzicii. Ideea unei antropologii arhetipale [Genres of Music. Idea of an Archetypological Anthropology] (2016). Professional affiliations: Member of the Union of Composers and Musicologists of Romania (from 1998). At present: teacher at the Gheorghe Dima Music Academy in Cluj-Napoca.
Zoltán GERGELY, PhD was born in Naszód (Năsăud, Romania). He started his studies in the Reformed High School of Cluj / Kolozsvár. He earned his BA and MA degrees at the Reformed Pedagogical Faculty, Musical Pedagogy Department of the Babeș –Bolyai University. Between 2010 and 2013 he continued his PhD studies at the Hungarian Institute for Ethnography and Anthropology of the Babeș–Bolyai University. He received his PhD in 2014. His most important fields of study are Christmas caroling, the funeral repertoire and wedding melodies in the Transylvanian Plain (Mezőség). Currently, he is a researcher of the Folklore Institute of the Romanian Academy in Cluj / Kolozsvár.
Miklós GYÖRGYJAKAB - He has acquired basic musical knowledge in the elementary classes of the Arts High School of Sfântu Gheorghe, which he has further developed at the Reformed High School. After obtaining the violin degree certificate and after a successful graduation, he continued his studies within the Music Pedagogy Department of the Faculty of Reformed Theology of the Babeş- Bolyai University of Cluj-Napoca, where he was awarded the music pedagogy degree in 2008. Thanks to the Evangelical Church of Germany, he continued his church music training at the Friedrich-Alexander-Universität Erlangen-Nürnberg.
350 CONTRIBUTORS
Following his studies abroad, he returned to Cluj-Napoca, where he received a master’s degree in Music Pedagogy in 2011. He contributes to the enrichment of Transylvanian music culture not only by choral singing, but he also likes to play music with the chronically ill children participating in therapeutic recreation camps. His direct relationship with the hearing impaired originates in his family.
János Zsolt IMRE after gaining his Engineer Diploma at Technical University of Cluj-Napoca, Romania, he started professionally his musical studies in Budapest, Hungary, studying classical music. He continued his musical studies at Mohawk College in Hamilton, Canada, where his major was jazz piano and composition. He followed his studies at the York University in Toronto, Canada, where he earned his Master’s Degree in Composition. In his master’s studies, his main research interest was focused on music education workshops for young musician and musical compositions for meditation, and how music and its elements affect the human body and the human’s emotions.
Stelian IONAȘCU is university lecturer at Faculty of Theology in Bucharest (since 2005) and conductor at” Nicolae Lungu” Patriarchate Choir (since 1993). He is a former student at University of Music in Bucharest, Pedagogy and Religious Music Department (1996). He also graduated at Faculty of Theology in Bucharest (1995) and he studied thoroughly stylistics in choir conducting at University of Music in Bucharest (1998). Under the guidance of Univ. Prof. Dr. Nicu Moldoveanu, he passed the examination for doctor`s degree at Faculty of Theology in Bucharest, with the thesis entitled Paul Constantinescu and Romanian psaltic music (2005). He is member of Romanian Composers and Musicologists Union (since 2006) and member of panels for musical contests, such as national Olympiad for schools (Târgoviște, 2017) or rendition contest for choral and psaltic music, organized by UNMB (Bucharest, 2017). He was one of the jury members at the” Praise the Lord” yearly music festival, developed under the patronage of Romanian Patriarchate, for composition (2011, 2014, 2015) and for rendition contest (2012, 2017). He is member in organizing committee of the 10th edition of” Praise the Lord” festival. He attended the International Musical Festival organized by Association for the Peace of the Religions and won a composition prize (1998). He also attended at” Praise the Lord” Festival and won the first prize at rendition contest, in 2008 and 2010. He wrote four books and more than thirty specialty studies. He is also a special guest at national and international symposiums of music and theology.
Eva Elena JORDAN has earned her BA degree in classical singing from the Gheorghe Dima Music Academy in Cluj-Napoca, continuing with her MA in the same field, and since 2016 she is a PhD student within the same institution, pursuing her research on the history of the operetta. In parallel with her studies, she has been a soprano soloist of the Hungarian Opera of Cluj since 2001, taught singing and chamber music at the Cluj-Napoca Sigismund Toduţă High School between 2008 and 2014, and since 2017 she has been an associate singing teacher at Babeş-Bolyai University, Faculty of Reformed Theology, Music Department.
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Noémi KARÁCSONY, mezzo-soprano is currently PhD student of the Transylvania University of Brașov. She completed her BA studies at the „George Enescu” University of Arts in Iaşi (2010–2014) and continued with MA studies at the Transylvania University of Braşov, the Faculty of Music (2015–2017). She appeared in numerous arias and lied recitals, concerts and also in operas. Among the works she performed the following can be mentioned: Nisi Dominus RV 608 and Stabat Mater RV 621 by Antonio Vivaldi, Stabat Mater by G. B. Pergolesi, arias from the works of J.S. Bach and G. F. Händel. She appeared as La Zia Principessa in the opera Suor Angelica by G. Puccini (Opera Brașov, 2016) and as Orfeo in the opera Orfeo ed Euridice by Ch. W. Gluck (Iași, Cluj-Napoca 2014). She was awarded first prize at the 8th edition of the Victor Giuleanu National Competion, the classical singing section (2017). In 2017 she won second prize at the 9th edition of the International Singing Competition “Città di Pisa - Omaggio a Titta Ruffo”, in Pisa, Italy. She participated in the master classes of the soprano Maria Slătinaru- Nistor (Iaşi), mezzo-soprano Liliana Bizineche (Braşov), soprano Cyrille Gerstenhaber (at the Summer University of the Early Music Festival in Miercurea Ciuc, 2016) and soprano Mária Temesi (Brașov, 2018).
Ádám PERÉNYI Dr. MD is an otorhinolaryngologist and assistant lecturer at the Department of Oto-Rhino-Laryngology, Head and Neck Surgery, University of Szeged, Hungary. He has diagnosed and treated several patients with dysphonia. His special interest focuses on the development of hearing, hearing- associated impairments and rehabilitation of hearing loss with implantable hearing aids. He authored 24 publications and held 67 oral presentations and posters at scientific meetings.
Éva PÉTER, PhD (born in 1965) is a lecturer professor of the Babes-Bolyai University, Faculty of Reformed Theology, Reformed Theology and Musical Pedagogy Department. She completed her education at the Faculty of Music Pedagogy of the „Gheorge Dima” Music Academy in Cluj-Napoca. At the beginning of her carreer she worked as a church organist, after which she pursued an academic carreer. In the present she teaches music theory, teaching methods, church music and organ. Her main domain of research is church music. She intensively studies the history of the church songs, aswell as the variations of the songs included in the chorale book of the hungarian reformed church and the traditional ones. With a thesis concerning „Community reformed songs in the written and oral tradition of Transylvania” she received a PhD in Music in January 2005. Published books:Community reformed songs in the written and oral tradition of Transylvania, Ed. Cluj University Press, Cluj-Napoca, 2008; Music Theory- Lecture notes, Ed. Napoca Star, Cluj-Napoca, 2009; Solfeggio Collection, Ed. Napoca Star, Cluj-Napoca, 2009; Music methodology, Ed. Cluj University Press, Cluj-Napoca, 2010; Folk song arrangements in the choral works of Albert Márkos, Ed. Cluj University Press, Cluj-Napoca, 2012.
Cristina ŞUTEU has earned a Bachelor Degree in Musicology in 2009 and a Master Degree in 2011 at the “Gheorghe Dima” Academy of Music, Cluj-Napoca. In 2015 she defended her PhD thesis accomplished under the supervision of Ph.D. Professor Gabriel Banciu, from the above mentioned institution. During her years of
352 CONTRIBUTORS
study, she carried out research internships at prestigious libraries in Torino (Italy), London (England), Vienna (Austria), Barcelona (Spain), Perth (Australia). She was an Erasmus student for one semester (2014-2015) at Universität für Musik und darstellendeKunst in Vienna, under the guidance of Ph.D. Professor Cornelia Szabó-Knotik, where she participated in the seminar on musical criticism, coordinated by Ph.D. Professor Fritz Trümpi. In 2016 she published her Ph.D. thesis at the Risoprint publishing house under the title Musical Criticism: Periegesis, Exegesis and Hermeneutics and edited the book Enescian Florilegium by the renowned musicologist ViorelCosma. She is part of the editorial board at Musicology Papers and Actualitateamuzicală and participates to national and international conferences. Currently she is university assistant within the “Gheorghe Dima” Academy of Music teaching Musicology, Research techniques, Theory & Solfeggio.
Mirela MERCEAN-ŢÂRC, Ph.D.,(b. in Bucharest) is a musicologist and associate professor at the Music Department of Faculty of Arts at the University of Oradea, where she teaches Analysis and Musical Forms, Performance`s Comparative Analysis and Estetics of the Chamber Music Repertoire. She published scientific studies in musicological books, proceedings and journals (Muzica, U.B.B.- Studia Musica, Musicology Papers, ITC in Musical Field) also many articles, interviews, chronicles, book reviews in magazines, journals, newspapers (Intermezzo, Oraşul, Filarmonia, Tribuna, Adevărul, Actualitatea muzicală, Opera Story; on line Euterpe magazine, 14 + Contemporary Music Journal, Lirika). Published books: “The Articulation of Form in the Symphonies of the Transylvanian Composers during the 20thCentury”, “The Crystallisation of the Sonata Form in the Klavier Music of the 18thCentury” (Oradea, 2007), ”Practical Course of Form`s Analysis I” (Oradea 2008),”Practical Course of Form`s Analysis II” (Oradea 2014), The Pyramid of Knowledge, chapter Music Education 2014, „MusicoLogical Frames – Subjective Itineraries in the Music of Cluj” 2018.Edited volumes: University of Oradea Annals – Music Fascicle, Francisc Hubic–The Mass of the Holy and Saving Passions of Maundy Thursday for Men Choir (2014), Francisc Hubic Sympozium (2015). She is a member of The Union of the Composers and Musicologist from Romania, Sigismund Toduță Foundation and Mozart Society Romania.
Bianca ŢIPLEA TEMEȘ is a musicologist and Reader at Gh. Dima Music Academy in Cluj-Napoca. She earned two doctorates from both the University of Music in Bucharest (2002) and the Universidad de Oviedo, Spain (2015). She also holds a degree in business management (M.B.A. granted by Babeş-Bolyai University), combining her academic career with her post at the Transylvania Philharmonic, where she was head of the Artistic Department. Her books have been published in Romania, the most recent being Seeing Sound, Hearing Images, edited in Cluj, together with the renowned musicologist Nicholas Cook at MediaMusica, and her articles have appeared in leading journals in Switzerland, Spain, Lithuania, the Czech Republic, Belgium, Romania, the U.S., and the U.K. (at Routledge). She has participated in many conferences organised by prestigious institutions such as the University of Cambridge, Universität der Künste Berlin,
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Université Paris-Sorbonne, IRCAM Paris, Conservatorio di Musica Santa Cecilia Rome, University of Chicago, City University of New York, among others. Since 2010 she has been visiting professor at various institutions: Universidad de Oviedo, Istituto Mascagni in Livorno, Paderewski Music Academy in Poznań, University College Dublin, Universidad Complutense in Madrid, and University of Montevallo, Alabama. She was awarded several Erasmus grants to study at the University of Cambridge/U.K. (where she was also Visiting Scholar in March, 2017), obtained two DAAD Scholarships in Berlin and Hamburg, received a research grant from the Paul Sacher Foundation, where she explored the Ligeti collection. In 2016 she became the founder and the director of the Festival “A Tribute to György Ligeti in his Native Transylvania”.
Rytis URNIEŽIUS 1978–1982 studied in Klaipėda Faculties of Lithuanian Conservatoire (now Lithuanian Academy of Music and Theatre) as a wind band conductor. On the 2nd of December, 1993 defended doctoral dissertation and gained doctoral degree in Humanities (Musicology) at the Lithuanian Academy of Music.Currently a Professor at Šiauliai University, Department of Music Pedagogy and Visual Arts. Foundator and director (from 1995) of Šiauliai University chamber orchestra. Foundator and editor-in-chief (2004–2016) of the Šiauliai University peer-reviewed research journal "The Spaces of Creation". 2012–2018 an Associate Professor (Docent) at Music Academy, Vytautas Magnus University, Kaunas (part- time position). Research interests: wind band music, instrumentation, orchestration, music history.
Lois Paula VĂDUVA is a university lecturer in the music department at Emanuel University of Oradea. She did her undergraduate studies in Music Pedagogy at Emanuel University of Oradea, Romania and her masters in Musical Art at the same University. She obtained her PhD in musicology at the University of Arts “George Enescu”, Iasi, with the thesis “The influence and control of socio- politics in music”. After completing her degree, she started teaching music history at Emanuel University of Oradea, Department of Theology - Music Pedagogy where she is currently a Lecturer. Her main topics of research are the relationship between music and the socio-political context and music therapy.
354 SUBSCRIPTION
University Babeş-Bolyai, Faculty of the Reformed Theology, Reformed Theology and Musical Pedagogy Department, Review STUDIA UNIVERSITATIS BABEŞ-BOLYAI MUSICA, ISSN: 1844-4369 Editorial Office: Str. Horea nr. 7, 400174 Cluj-Napoca, Romania Editor-in-chief: PhD. Gabriela COCA, tel. 0742-932.923, E-mail: [email protected]
SUBSCRIPTION We invite You to take out a subscription to our review: return this subscription to the address: 400174 Cluj-Napoca, str. Horea nr. 7 Attach the XEROX COPY of the bank transfer receipt
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The redaction of the musical magazine STUDIA UBB MUSICA of the series Studia Universitatis Babeş-Bolyai invites you to make an agreement regarding the change of the music magazines between the two institutions. In this respect, the two institutions offer each other a copy of the volumes of the musicology studies that are edited by that institution. These copies are considered to be donations, as they will be registered in the library of the institutions that have this agreement. If our magazine seems interesting to you and you would like to receive a copy of each number please sign/stamp this agreement and send one of the copies of your musical magazine on the address of our redaction.
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INVITATION FOR PUBLISHING
Starting with March 2008, we launched the release of a new series of musicology magazines under the name of “Studia Universitatis Babeş-Bolyai”, with the title of “Musica”. In 2010, after three years of being published, we can announce that CNCSIS graded the magazine as a B+ category, and in december 2012 the CNCS B category. In the same time, the magazine has been given the BDI code as the studies published inside can be found in the following international data basis ERIH PLUS (2015); ULRICH'S (TM) The Global Source for Periodicals; CEEOL Central and Eastern European Online Library Germany; EBSCO – EBSCOhost Online Research Databases; RILM - Journals RILM Abstracts of Music Literature. The magazine is also included in the following international catalogues: RUG LINKS Find e-Journal Catalogues and databases at the University of Groningen, Netherlands (RUG) libraries; Johns Hopkins University Press / Project MUSE; Catalog Biblioteca Nazionale di Cosenza, Italy; Catalog Technische Universität Berlin, Germany; Catalog ViFaOst: E-Zeitschriften Osteuropa; Catalog E-Journals Library, Columbia University, New York. Studia UBB Musica can be found in an electronic format on http://www.studia.ubbcluj.ro/arhiva/arhiva_en.php with the ISSN 2065-9628, and it is also published with the code of ISSN 1844-4369. If anyone is interested in publishing with us, we gladly accept your collaboration by editing your studies in an elegantly and qualitative form. The magazine is published twice a year:
- For the first number of the year the deadline for the receiving of the studies is 15th of March; - For the second number of the year we accept the studies up to 15th of September.
Taking into consideration the fact that we want to advertise the magazine in the world, we accept English, German and French as the publication languages; in addition, we need the proofing of the text to be done beforehand. We can receive the studies in an electronic form sent to the following e-mail address:
We will accept all the studies that have a musical theme. Due to the musical examples that are inserted in the studies, the authors are asked to apply in their studies the format types that are described on the next page of this invitation. The format type stays the same for each number of the magazine. The printing of the magazine takes approximate two months, consequently, the number one of the respective year will be released in (May) June, and the second number will be released in (November) December. INVITATION FOR PUBLISHING
The subscriptions can be made not only by the institutions but also by everyone interested. The enlisting on the subscription list will be sent to the e-mail address:
The interested people and institutions would be systematically announced by e-mail when the magazine will be released and they would be announced of the price of the magazine. The Cluj University Press Publishing House establishes the price of every magazine and it depends on the number of the pages of each magazine, as this number is flexible and it varies. This happens due to the number and the extended form of the studies that would be gathered between the publications of the two numbers of the magazine. The account numbers where the money for the subscriptions will be sent are as follows:
Account Name: Gabriela Coca Account IBAN Card Euro: RO 03 BTRL 01 304 201 929 390 XX Banca Transilvania, Sucursala Cluj-Napoca The name of the payment: SUBSCRIPTION FOR STUDIA UBB MUSICA.
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THE STANDARD FORMAT OF THE STUDIES:
Page: A4, Portrait Margins: Top = 4.8 cm Bottom = 4.8 cm Left = 4 cm Right = 4 cm Header = 4.8 cm, Footer: 4.6 cm. Layout – Headers and Footers: Different Odd and Even; Different First Page. Font: ARIAL, the size of the letters = 11 Alignment: Justify The line spacing = 1 Footnotes: the size of the letter = 9 (The titles that are quoted into the footnotes will have their translation into English put in brackets.) - Hanging: 0.35 cm The Model for Footnotes and References: for books1, for studies2. The Bibliography (named: REFERENCES): - The name of the author(s) are written with spaces between them - The title of the literary work is written in Italics. The title of the book (musical work) must be in brackets translated into the language that the musical work is published (English, German and French) - Then follows, separated by comma, the editor, the place of editing, the year, the pages - The size of the letter: 10 Word of advice: the title of the books (musical studies) that are quoted into the footnotes must be noted in the bibliography as well! The tables (the musical examples): will be numbered in Arabic (e.g. Table 1), they are aligned on the right hand side, upwards, before the title of the table, then, they are written using bold letters. - The title of the table: centred, on top of the table - The size of the letter: 10 The figures: the quality of the pictures, the Xerox copies or the scanned drawings must be very good. Under each illustration, there must be an explication of the figure attached. - The size of the letter: 10 Each study must be preceded by a SUMMARY into English and into Romanian of 10- 15 lines: - Indent in the left side: 1.25 cm - The size of the letter: 10 Each study must be containing under the summary 3-10 KEYWORDS extracted from the study. - Indent in the left side: 1.25 cm - The size of the letter: 10 Next to the name of the author (under the title), on the footnote there must be mentioned the name and the address of the institution where he/she is hired, the profession (the didactic rank), and also the contact address of the author. All these will be in Italic.
Each study must be containing a short AUTOBIOGRAPHY of the author (10-15 LINES), placed after the list of the Bibliography. - The size of the letter: 10.
Please, do not divide the study in sections and don't insert landscape pages!
1 Coca, Gabriela, Ede Terényi - History and Analysis, Cluj University Press, Cluj-Napoca, 2010. 2 Kerman, Joseph, Sketch Studies, in: Musicology in the 1980s: Methods, Goals, Opportunities, D. Kern Holoman and Claude V. Palisca eds., New York: Da Capo Press, 1982, pp. 53-65.
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